BlackRock and BNY Mellon Collaborate to Launch Blockchain-Based Share Class for $150B Treasury Trust Fund
BlackRock has teamed up with BNY Mellon to introduce a blockchain-powered share class for its $150 billion Treasury Trust money market fund, marking a significant step in integrating distributed ledger technology (DLT) into traditional financial products.
The new “DLT Shares” will not involve cryptocurrencies but will leverage blockchain to digitally record and track share ownership. BNY Mellon, as the fund’s exclusive distributor, will utilize blockchain technology to streamline back-office operations. This initiative is a key move toward exploring tokenized cash and digital assets within the traditional finance sector.
This announcement follows a growing trend in the financial industry, where several institutions are adopting blockchain to tokenize real-world assets (RWAs). In a similar development, Libre announced it would tokenize $500 million of Telegram’s $2.4 billion debt, bringing it to the TON blockchain ecosystem.
As of April 29, BlackRock’s Liquidity Treasury Trust Fund manages over $150 billion in assets. To invest in the new DLT share class, institutional investors must meet a $3 million minimum investment requirement, though there are no minimums for additional purchases. The SEC filing is still in its early stages and awaits approval.
This marks another milestone in BlackRock’s efforts toward tokenization. The firm’s BUIDL fund, launched in partnership with Securitize, now holds more than $1.7 billion in assets and recently expanded its operations onto the Solana blockchain.
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has long championed the potential of decentralized finance and tokenization. In his 2025 letter to shareholders, Fink warned that the U.S. risks losing its financial dominance unless it addresses its national debt, which could drive greater interest in alternatives like Bitcoin (BTC).
“If the U.S. doesn’t address its debt issues, it risks losing its status as the global reserve currency to digital assets like Bitcoin,” Fink wrote. “Decentralized finance is a groundbreaking innovation—offering markets faster, cheaper, and more transparent transactions. But it could also challenge America’s economic leadership.”
