BlackRock, SBI and Startale Explore Tokenized MMFs in Japan

BlackRock, SBI and Startale aim to connect three critical pieces of a 24/7 institutional liquidity ecosystem: Investment Products, Distribution and Blockchain Infrastructure.

The opportunity? Connecting cross-border payments, yield-bearing liquidity and corporate cash management.

BlackRock, SBI and Startale have announced an agreement to explore tokenized money market funds (MMFs) in Japan.

➡️ The three firms represent critical parts of the value chain:

• BlackRock - Asset manufacturing: Institutional investment products and asset management expertise.

• SBI - Local distribution: Access to Japanese financial institutions, corporate treasuries and investors.

• Startale - Blockchain infrastructure: Technical expertise to connect digital assets, money and transaction workflows.

JPYSC, a yen-denominated stablecoin issued by SBI Shinsei Trust Bank, is being explored as part of the infrastructure connecting tokenized MMFs with digital money.

➡️ Consider a Corporate Treasury use case:

1️⃣ Friday: A Japanese corporate receives $100M in USD stablecoins, after traditional banking hours.

2️⃣ Using onchain infrastructure, it converts the USD stablecoins into JPYSC and subscribes to a yen-denominated BlackRock tokenized MMF.

3️⃣ The fund investment earns a return over the weekend.

4️⃣ Monday: The corporate redeems its fund units and converts JPYSC into yen bank deposits for operational liquidity.

The opportunity: 24/7 movement between cross-border payments, investment liquidity and corporate cash management.

➡️ Questions to answer:

Will JPYSC become the actual subscription and redemption settlement asset or the actual custodian settlement is still in JPY?

Who provides liquidity outside banking hours? If an investor redeems ¥1 billion in MMF units on Saturday, who delivers immediately usable JPYSC, and at what cost?

Putting a money market fund onchain is one thing. Making it usable as part of a 24/7 institutional liquidity ecosystem is another.