A major UK asset manager is stepping into blockchain-based finance in a move that signals how quickly tokenisation is becoming part of mainstream investment strategy.
Key Takeaways
Aviva Investors will explore launching tokenised funds on the XRP Ledger with Ripple.
The move marks the firm’s first step into blockchain-based fund infrastructure.
Ripple is expanding XRPL’s role in institutional finance beyond payments.
Aviva Investors has chosen Ripple as its technology partner to explore the issuance of tokenised versions of its traditional fund structures. The initiative will see selected investment products brought onto the XRP Ledger, as both firms align around a longer-term plan to modernise fund infrastructure.
A Strategic Shift Toward Digital Fund Infrastructure
Rather than launching a standalone crypto product, the focus is on transforming how conventional funds are structured and administered. The collaboration centers on embedding blockchain rails beneath existing investment vehicles, with the goal of improving operational efficiency without altering the core investment strategies themselves.
For Aviva Investors, this marks a first formal move into tokenised fund structures. The firm, part of one of the UK’s largest insurance groups, is positioning the initiative as an extension of its broader innovation agenda. Over the coming years, both sides are expected to refine the framework and assess how tokenised funds can be integrated into regulated distribution channels.
Why the XRP Ledger
The XRP Ledger is being positioned as the technical backbone of the effort. Its architecture allows assets to be issued and transferred with near-instant settlement and low transaction costs. The network does not rely on mining, a structural feature often highlighted for energy efficiency.
Beyond speed, the ledger includes built-in functionalities designed for compliance-sensitive environments. That is a key consideration for asset managers operating under strict regulatory oversight. Since its launch in 2012, the XRPL has processed billions of transactions and maintains millions of active wallets, supported by a globally distributed validator set.
Industry Tone: From Pilot Projects to Production
Executives involved in the project framed tokenisation as entering a more mature phase. The narrative is no longer about experimentation, but about building scalable structures capable of supporting institutional-grade assets.
From Aviva’s perspective, tokenised funds could streamline processes such as issuance, settlement, and record-keeping, potentially reducing friction and administrative overhead. On Ripple’s side, the partnership reinforces its ambition to position the XRP Ledger as infrastructure for regulated financial markets rather than solely a payments network.
Ripple Expands Its Institutional Footprint
The announcement comes during a broader push by Ripple into institutional markets. Its prime brokerage platform recently added support for Hyperliquid, enabling professional clients to access on-chain derivatives liquidity within a consolidated brokerage framework.
Separately, Ripple has worked with Billiton Diamond and Ctrl Alt to bring more than $280 million in certified polished diamonds onto the XRP Ledger. The project uses Ripple’s custody infrastructure to track ownership and provenance, though secondary market activity is still awaiting regulatory clearance.
Taken together, these developments highlight a widening strategy: building tokenised representations of funds, commodities, and derivatives on a single blockchain infrastructure.
As traditional finance continues to explore blockchain integration, partnerships like this suggest that tokenisation is gradually shifting from concept to implementation – with large asset managers now testing how digital rails can support conventional investment products at scale.
