The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the US post-trade market infrastructure has launched ComposerX, a complete, end-to-end suite for managing digital assets through their full lifecycle.

Nadine Chakar, global head of DTCC Digital Asset, told Markets Media in an email that ComposerX is live on 4 February 2025 and supporting numerous tokenized ETFs operating on multiple public networks, as the suite is designed to be asset and blockchain agnostic.

“We support the tokenization of real-world assets (public and private) – as well as the tokenization and automation of functions such as collateral management and lending, for example,” she added. “We’re seeing more regulatory clarity and industry collaboration, which is spearheading a powerful surge toward tokenization.”

Chakar highlighted recent commentary at the Davos summit, which included Larry Fink, chief executive of BlackRock, saying, “if we can tokenize bonds and stocks…it will democratize investing in ways we can’t imagine.”

DTCC agrees with this sentiment according to Chakar, who described the launch of ComposerX suite as the first major milestone in the firm’s journey to support clients as they look to fully capitalize on this technology.

“As a comprehensive suite of platforms designed to streamline token creation and settlement, ComposerX aims to accelerate digital asset adoption throughout the financial ecosystem,” she added.

Chakar said that ComposerX is different from other tokenization venues because its three core platforms help firms tackle the longstanding challenge of managing data associated with real-world asset tokenization:

• Factory provides all the functionality and benefits of common blockchain token factories and adds many other unique benefits, including the ability to embed comprehensive and actionable data directly into tokens at the point of creation; as well as full control over token functions and data access, allowing only authorized users to modify or manage data. Factory also combines the leading tokenization protocols like ERC-3643, ERC 20, or any other EVM-based standards with sophisticated data writing schema management to align industry data and enable automated processing via smart contracts – at a scale that was not previously possible.
• Capital Markets Platform (CMP) helps bridge web3 and traditional systems. CMP can be used to manage the lifecycle of tokens created through Factory and to provide an integration layer to traditional middle- and back-offices.
• LedgerScan provides transparency to all the activity on the ledger including (but not limited to) Factory-issued tokens and their data.

She continued that ComposerX uses patented technology from the Compliance Aware Token Framework (CATF) that powers all of DTCC Digital Assets’ offerings and enables real-time enforcement of regulatory rules that are validated as transactions are executed. CATF helps clients automate complex multi-jurisdictional regulatory and transactional policies including for token issuance, distribution control and transaction operations, enabling efficient regulated asset tokenization,

ComposerX’s three core platforms have been designed with integration and harmonization in mind as DTCC believes that the financial industry will, at least in the shorter-term, require a hybrid approach to adoption – with traditional and digital systems living in harmony. Chakar said: “This is why our platforms are designed to support that convergence.”

For example, Factory provides robust utilities to support institutional tokenization requirements, including pricing, role and rights management, reference data and standards, and compliance enforcement.

LedgerScan helps firms track and manage tokens representing any asset from any source spanning any network – reconciling all activity across systems and integrating with legacy accounting and custodial models.

The capital markets platform is built to serve as an integration layer between web3 and traditional middle and back-office systems, supporting the entire portfolio management lifecycle of tokenized assets.

The ComposerX platform has also been designed to support any form of digital cash – including tokenized bank deposits, stablecoins, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and any other form that fiat may take in a tokenized world – while regulatory certainty and support are required to determine which form of digital cash would be most appropriate in each use case,

Chakar said representations on-chain can get locked into liquidity silos so DTCC is enabling the real-time conversion of any traditional real-world asset, including fiat currency, into – and back out of – a digital twin that represents the legal rights associated with the original asset.

“Our intention is to unlock mobility and enable those assets to be used in the rapidly expanding landscape of tokenized applications, while maintaining access to the deeper liquidity pool of the traditional assets,” she added.

DTCC plans to continue enhancing ComposerX in 2025, including adding functionality to Factory that enables composability of financial processes. Composability is the ability of protocols and applications to seamlessly interact with one another.