UK banks complete first live customer transactions using tokenized deposits
A group of major UK banks participating in the Great British Tokenised Deposit initiative completed the first live customer transactions using tokenized sterling deposits, trade body UK Finance announced.
The Great British Tokenised Deposit (GBTD) initiative, convened by trade association UK Finance, executed what it described as the first live customer transactions using tokenized sterling deposits. The seven participating lenders are Barclays, HSBC UK, Lloyds Banking Group, Monzo, Nationwide, NatWest, and Santander. The initial batch of transactions included two remortgage completions and a private marketplace purchase.[1][2][3][4]
According to UK Finance, tokenized deposits serve as digital versions of ordinary commercial bank money while retaining conventional regulatory protections. In the remortgage cases, funds remained locked until closing conditions were fulfilled before moving automatically, allowing borrowers to continue earning interest until completion. In the marketplace purchase, funds were held in the buyer's account until the item changed hands. Quant built the shared platform that powered the transactions.[4][6]
Gilbert Verdian, founder and chief executive of Quant, said conditional payments can mitigate issues such as failed transaction completions and authorized push payment fraud. Treasury Economic Secretary Lucy Rigby labeled the milestone critical for payments innovation in the UK. The pilot phase launched in September 2025 with six institutions before Monzo joined in January. The GBTD project has also been admitted into the Bank of England's Synchronisation Lab, with future trials planned to test settling digital assets with tokenized deposits.[4]
Key facts
- UK Finance announced that the Great British Tokenised Deposit (GBTD) initiative completed the first live customer transactions using tokenized sterling deposits.
- The GBTD project includes seven financial institutions: Barclays, HSBC UK, Lloyds Banking Group, Monzo, Nationwide, NatWest, and Santander.
- The initial transactions comprised two remortgage completions and one marketplace purchase.
- The transactions used conditional payments, locking funds until deal terms were met before moving them automatically.
- Quant built the shared platform infrastructure used for the tokenized deposit transactions.
- The GBTD initiative has been admitted into the Bank of England's Synchronisation Lab to explore atomic settlement in central bank money.
- The live pilot began in September 2025 with six banks, and Monzo joined as the seventh participant in January.
Sources · 6 sources
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CoindeskArticle ·
UK’s largest banks complete world’s first interbank transactions using tokenized deposits Barclays, NatWest, and HSBC and others used tokenized deposits for remortgages and a marketplace-payment test, taking bank-issued digital cash beyond a single institution.
Open source - TB
The Block@TheBlockCoPost on X ·
NEW: UK banks have completed the world's first interbank transactions using tokenized deposits, Reuters reported. Lloyds, NatWest, and Barclays conducted two remortgage transactions, while three banks, including HSBC, tested a person-to-person payment. https://t.co/VOTelhrUwQ
Open source - LS
Laura Shin@laurashinPost on X ·
UK Finance's seven-member GBTD initiative, which includes Barclays, HSBC UK and NatWest, has completed what it calls the first live customer transactions using tokenized sterling deposits: two remortgages and a marketplace sale, with funds locked until each deal's conditions were met. https://t.co/t776OUnREj
Open source - UN
UnchainedArticle ·
UK Banks Turn Customer Deposits Into Digital Tokens to Close Two Mortgage Refinancings A seven-member UK banking initiative that includes Barclays and HSBC UK has completed what trade body UK Finance called “the first live customer transactions using tokenised sterling deposits,” in an announcement on Thursday. The payments ran through the Great British Tokenised Deposit (GBTD) initiative, which UK Finance convened. Its other members are Lloyds Banking Group, Monzo, Nationwide, NatWest and Santander . UK Finance describes tokenized deposits as digital versions of ordinary commercial bank money that keep the regulatory protections of a conventional deposit. Money That Waits for a Condition The first batch covered two remortgage completions and one marketplace purchase . In the remortgages, the money sat locked until each deal completed, then moved automatically. UK Finance said the setup can also let borrowers keep earning interest on that money until the deal closes. In the marketplace sale, a buyer paying a private seller had the money locked in their own account until the item changed hands. “These transactions are real money moving on UK infrastructure, not an experiment,” said Gilbert Verdian , founder and CEO of Quant , in a statement UK Finance published with the results. Quant built the shared GBTD platform. Verdian said conditional payments can solve problems ranging from “failed completions” to “authorised push payment fraud.” Lucy Rigby , economic secretary to the Treasury, called the transactions “a critical milestone for payments innovation in the UK.” Digital Assets Are Next UK Finance launched the live pilot phase in September 2025 with six banks, and Monzo joined as the seventh participant in January. The project has also been accepted into the Bank of England’s Synchronisation Lab, which explores atomic settlement in central bank money. Some of the same banks are working on similar rails elsewhere. In July, 17 banks, including HSBC and Lloyds, lined up to pilot live tokenized deposit payments on a blockchain-based ledger Swift opened. UK Finance said it expects further pilots over the next few months to test settling digital assets with tokenized customer money. Banks in the project plan to issue digital debt instruments whose coupons are paid in tokenized deposits. Related Listen: Robinhood’s Tokenized AMC Shares Spark a Fight Over What Stock Tokens Really Are The post UK Banks Turn Customer Deposits Into Digital Tokens to Close Two Mortgage Refinancings appeared first on Unchained .
Open source - TW
The Wolf Of All Streets@scottmelkerPost on X ·
JUST IN: 🇬🇧 UK BANKS BARCLAYS, HSBC, LLOYDS, NATWEST, NATIONWIDE AND SANTANDER COMPLETE WORLD’S FIRST INTERBANK TRANSACTIONS USING TOKENIZED DEPOSITS
Open source - CN
crypto.news@cryptodotnewsPost on X ·
JUST IN: Quant powers first UK banking tokenized deposits Lloyds, NatWest and Barclays used the system for real mortgage transactions, while HSBC joined a marketplace payment test using Quant’s infrastructure. https://t.co/CWI479fYUY
Open source