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Tokenized liquidity fund launched
Aviva Investors, the London-based asset management arm of Aviva Plc, launched a tokenized share class of its US Dollar Liquidity Fund on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) after receiving approval from the Central Bank of Ireland.
“Aviva Investors, the London-based asset management arm of Aviva Plc, has launched a tokenized share class”
The tokenized share class gives eligible investors with digital wallets access to a regulated US dollar liquidity fund while keeping traditional custody arrangements, with underlying assets continuing to be held by custodian BNY Mellon.
The fund invests in high-grade, short-term US dollar-denominated debt securities and money market instruments issued by governments, banks and corporations, and Aviva said the tokenized share class offers the same investment objective and liquidity profile as the conventional fund.
The launch follows Aviva Investors’ partnership tie-up with Ripple, announced earlier this year, with Ripple’s XRP Ledger providing the blockchain infrastructure for issuing and managing the tokenized shares.
Custody, infrastructure, and design
The tokenized structure keeps custody off-chain, with BNY Mellon holding the underlying assets while Komainu provides digital asset custody and Licuido supplies the tokenization infrastructure.
One report described the vehicle as using a "digital twin" model, where each on-chain token mirrors ownership of the underlying off-chain fund that was originally launched in 2020 as an Ireland-domiciled UCITS money market fund.
Mark Versey, CEO of Aviva Investors, said, "It is our view that this trend will increase efficiency and ultimately lead to improved client outcomes," describing the launch as the asset manager's first step into tokenized funds.
Ripple said the XRP Ledger was purpose-built for institutional asset tokenization, and it emphasized that "Working with Aviva proves regulated investment products can utilize blockchain architecture in live market conditions," in its announcement.
Regulatory milestone and scale
The Central Bank of Ireland's authorization was framed as a regulatory milestone for tokenized fund structures in Europe, with one account saying the approval allows the product to operate within the fund's existing regulated structure.
“as of July 30, the XRP Ledger held approximately $313.3 million in distributed assets”
Aviva Investors and Ripple have not disclosed the initial value of shares issued through the tokenized class, and one report said access remains limited to eligible investors and depends on local securities rules and distribution approvals.
On XRPL, RWA.xyz data cited in the coverage put the network at approximately $313.3 million in distributed assets and $4.06 billion in represented assets as of July 30, with the combined tracked real-world asset value at roughly $4.37 billion.
The same reporting said the number of RWA holders increased 17.42% over the previous 30 days to 182, while another account noted that for US investors the fund's dollar denomination does not automatically make it available in the United States and the announcement did not identify a US retail offering or approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
