UBS has closed the first tokenized debt transaction for Asia-Pacific investors, underlining its commitment to expand regional investment opportunities.

The bank’s London branch issued US$50 million in digital fixed-rate security tokens using blockchain technology to a series of high-net-worth and global family and institutional wealth investors across Hong Kong and Singapore. The US dollar-denominated instruments carry a tenor of six months and are tokenized on a permissioned ethereum-based blockchain.

The private placement marks the first time that uncertificated securities on a blockchain have been constituted under English and Swiss laws. They are among the first-ever global blockchain-based transactions involving multiple jurisdictions.

UBS says the transaction aims to meet a rising demand among Asian investors for fixed-income investments that can be transacted using blockchain, a new disruptive technology that can make issuing securities more efficient while enabling new product innovations.

“This transaction is the first step in an exciting journey in offering blockchain-based products to regional investors, and it underlines UBS’s ability to expand digital investment opportunities for our clients,” says August Hatecke, co-head of UBS Global Wealth Management APAC.

“We registered strong interest for this inaugural issue from regional high-net-worth individuals and family offices, which underscores their interest in digital securities," adds Amy Lo, co-head of UBS Global Wealth Management APAC.

The banks says it intends to explore further transactions, including for third-party issuers, to maintain a growing pipeline of digital security deals. In November 2022, UBS priced its inaugural senior unsecured digital bond, which comprised 375 million Swiss francs (US$404 million) in three-year digital bonds.