DigiFT launches first actively managed tokenised equity fund with BNY

DigiFT, a regulated on-chain exchange for institutional real-world assets, announced the introduction of DigiFT US Equity Income Fund (bEQTY), the first actively managed tokenised US equity income fund on the Ethereum public blockchain.

The launch of bEQTY, which is eligible for accredited investors, represents a significant milestone in the evolution of tokenisation—marking a shift from early experimentation with blockchain-based financial instruments toward enabling investors to construct more complete, portfolio-relevant strategies on-chain.

BNY serves as the investment manager for the underlying traditional US equity income strategy which extends tokenisation into actively managed public equities. This launch demonstrates how regulated on-chain infrastructure is advancing beyond initial applications to address more sophisticated areas of the capital markets.

Tokenisation as institutional portfolio infrastructure

Public equities remain a core component of institutional portfolios. Tokenisation introduces a digitally native form factor that enables programmable settlement, enhanced transparency, and more streamlined lifecycle management—without changing the underlying investment strategy or governance framework.

By representing equity income strategies on regulated on-chain infrastructure, eligible investors gain greater flexibility in how sophisticated financial instruments are held, transferred and integrated into portfolios, supporting more agile capital management.

For Web3-native allocators, as on-chain treasuries and funds mature, there is growing interest in incorporating assets that introduce exposure to the real-economy and are less correlated with crypto-native market cycles.

The launch also illustrates how regulated on-chain marketplaces can support wider institutional participation by enabling eligible investors to access the strategy through DigiFT's regulated framework.

Henry Zhang, founder and group CEO of DigiFT, said: "For years, tokenisation has been about proving the technology. This launch proves its use case. By bringing an actively managed equity income strategy on-chain within a regulated market, we're demonstrating how blockchain infrastructure is becoming part of mainstream institutional finance."

Doni Shamsuddin, head of Asia Pacific, BNY Investments, said: "We are thrilled to work with DigiFT in bridging traditional finance and emerging on-chain solutions for institutional investors. Leveraging BNY's deep investment capabilities, we enable a professionally managed portfolio on blockchain — anchored in established trust, scale and governance."

From experimentation to portfolio-relevant strategies

Tokenisation has gained early traction in short-duration and cash-like instruments, demonstrating the operational benefits of blockchain within regulated frameworks.

As tokenisation matures, extending its capabilities into actively managed public equities represents a natural next phase—moving beyond single assets toward actively managed strategies within regulated market infrastructure.

Re-disseminated by Wealth and Society