In what is a key part of the payment service juggernauts’ crypto venture, Visa is set to help banks test tokenized assets and smart contracts. Indeed, the firm has created a brand new platform in order to help the development and testing of fiat-backed tokens.
The new tokenized asset sandbox has already been used by Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Artentaria. Moreover, Visa notes that its assistance should help continue to evolve how global banks interact in an evolving financial world. It is just one of the many ways that the payment firm has continued to embrace the digital asset sector.
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Visa Helps Banks Through New Tokenization Testing Platform
Within the digital asset space, tokenization has become a burgeoning industry. Among the advocates of the evolution is the CEO of $10 trillion asset manager BlackRock, Larry Fink. Earlier this year, he told Bloomberg, “The next step going forward will be the tokenization of financial assets.”
This has become a clear focus of those in the sector, and traditional finance entities that see the immense potential in the process. Among them is Visa, which has begun to help test tokenized assets and smart contracts. Specifically, Visa Crypto Head, Cuy Sheffield, noted that as real-world assets begin to make their way onto a blockchain, there is a clear need evolving.
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“We think that [tokenization] creates a significant opportunity for banks to issue their own fiat-backed tokens on blockchains,” Sheffield told Blockworks. Moreover, he added banks must “do it in a regulated way and enable their customers to access and participate in these eon-chain capital markets.”
Sheffield noted that the company has observed Central Banks exploring tokenization. Specifically, how it can push finance into a modern and more digitized world. The potential of real-world assets on blockchain is immeasurable. With companies like Visa, that potential can be realized sooner rather than later.