Recently, at the 2025 Hong Kong FinTech Week, Standard Chartered Group CEO Bill Winters stated that almost all global transactions will eventually be settled on the blockchain, and all currencies will be digitized. "We believe that the leadership in Hong Kong also agrees with this view, and that the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin will facilitate more cross-border digital trade." According to Ledger Insights, Standard Chartered has participated in stablecoin and tokenized deposit projects in the Hong Kong market.

In his speech, Winters pointed out that this is not just an evolution of banking technology, but a historic moment of disruptive change in the global financial system. In recent years, Standard Chartered has continued to increase its investment in digital assets and blockchain, frequently engaging in activities ranging from crypto asset custody to tokenized products, and from cross-border settlement to stablecoin projects.

According to the Financial Times, Standard Chartered announced in mid-2025 the launch of institutional spot trading services for Bitcoin and Ethereum, becoming one of the first large international banks to directly offer crypto trading services. In terms of collaboration, Standard Chartered has established a strategic partnership with crypto broker FalconX to provide cross-border crypto liquidity support for institutional clients using its banking settlement system. The bank has also set up a new digital asset custody entity in Europe to respond to the upcoming MiCA regulatory framework in the EU.

Why Blockchain May Become the "Settlement Layer for Global Transactions"

The "traceable, verifiable, and programmable" characteristics of blockchain make it likely to replace existing cross-border payment and settlement networks. Winters predicts that the wave of asset tokenization will drive fundamental changes in market structure. The head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered also predicts that by 2028, the market value of tokenized money market funds and publicly traded stocks could reach $75 billion.

According to joint research data from the International Monetary Fund and the Bank for International Settlements, over 90% of the more than 80 central banks surveyed are researching or testing digital currencies. This trend indicates that the "on-chain" transformation of currency and transactions is no longer a distant prospect, but a technological evolution driven by central banks and banking systems around the world.

Academia has also pointed out that the potential efficiency of blockchain in cross-border settlement far exceeds that of current systems like SWIFT. A paper published on Theseus argues that blockchain can reduce settlement times from "days" to "minutes or even seconds," significantly lowering transaction costs and achieving real-time, tamper-proof accounting and compliance automation.

In the future, competition in the banking industry will no longer be limited to balance sheets but will extend to technological standards and settlement architecture. The emergence of blockchain as the underlying layer for transactions means that the role of banks may be reshaped.

Last month, Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev likened tokenization to a "freight train," predicting widespread adoption in major markets within the next five years. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink stated in April that he believes all asset classes—from stocks and bonds to real estate—could eventually be tokenized, calling it a "revolution" in the investment field.

Banking and Blockchain: Replacement or Coexistence?

Achieving the on-chain transformation of global transaction chains will be a long experimental process, especially in the context of ununified clearing interoperability and compliance standards. This means that large banks, while embracing innovation, must still maintain a delicate balance between regulatory frameworks and risk control. Standard Chartered's practice is essentially an "experiment within the rules."

Traditional banks still face fundamental challenges in the process of blockchain integration. Bloomberg analysis suggests that as tokenized assets bring about transaction automation and smart settlement, the "intermediary role" of banks will be weakened. This will force banks to seek new profit models—such as transforming into digital asset platforms, custody and compliance service providers, or building end-to-end tokenization infrastructure for institutional clients.

Standard Chartered's goal is not to replace crypto-native enterprises but to "co-build the next generation of financial markets" with them. This cooperative attitude reflects the gradual formation of a "symbiotic structure" between traditional financial institutions and decentralized ecosystems—banks provide regulatory and liquidity channels for crypto enterprises, while crypto enterprises bring innovation and new customer bases to banks.

According to Ledger Insights analysis, the Asian market, particularly Hong Kong, mainland China, and Singapore, will become the forefront of this global financial "on-chain" wave. Hong Kong has launched a cross-border stablecoin pilot, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore is also advancing the institutional-level tokenized asset framework "Project Guardian." The regulatory friendliness and openness of regional financial centers provide ideal soil for cooperation between banks and technology companies.

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