Fidelity Strategist: Tokenized Funds' Long-Term Value for Institutions Lies in Balance Sheet Management, Not 24/7 Liquidity

According to Coindesk, Giselle Lai, Fidelity International's director and digital asset strategist for Asia-Pacific, stated recently that the long-term appeal of tokenized funds for large global institutions centers on balance sheet management rather than round-the-clock liquidity. Lai noted that multinational institutions typically need to hold cash across multiple jurisdictions, manage currency exposures, and meet regulatory requirements, with traditional bank deposits often generating minimal returns.

Tokenized instruments can provide 24/7 yield generation, improve fund transfer efficiency, and better serve institutional liquidity and collateral management needs, Lai added. He also noted that tokenized products are primarily applied in investment scenarios, with U.S. Treasury-backed tokenized money market funds being the most popular. Institutional investors focus less on the 'token' itself and more on whether it makes asset management faster and cheaper.