India Launches Demat 2.0 Pilot for Tokenized Corporate Bonds
- India’s Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) launched the Demat 2.0 pilot, facilitating tokenized corporate bonds linked to the wholesale digital rupee.
- By September 10, three companies raised a total of 10.25 billion rupees (approximately $115 million) through this initiative.
- India’s corporate bond market is valued at 53.64 trillion rupees, or about $627 billion, representing around 22.51% of the country’s total bond market.
- The pilot aims to enhance efficiency by enabling atomic settlement, where bonds and funds transfer simultaneously using smart contracts.
- REC Limited was the first issuer on September 7, raising 5 billion rupees, followed by L&T Limited with another 5 billion rupees, and IIFL with 250 million rupees.
The Demat 2.0 system reduces manual processes and accelerates settlements, allowing issuers to receive funds on the same trading day and investors to access their money immediately after transactions.
This pilot represents a significant step in modernizing India’s bond market, which stands at $627 billion, as it integrates tokenization with existing financial infrastructure.(Source)
