DTCC's decision to connect its upcoming tokenized securities platform to the Stellar (XLM) network is the latest step in a relationship that stretches back nearly a decade, according to Stellar Development Foundation CEO Denelle Dixon.

Earlier this week, DTCC said tokenized assets held through its Depository Trust Company could become available on Stellar beginning in the first half of 2027.

The move carries weight because DTCC is one of Wall Street's core market utilities, overseeing more than $114 trillion in assets. The Stellar integration is designed to support the issuance, settlement and lifecycle management of tokenized securities, while opening the door to future projects involving highly liquid assets such as major indexes and U.S. Treasuries

The roots of the partnership go back to Securrency, the institutional tokenization platform DTCC acquired in 2023 and became what is now DTCC Digital Assets.

Securrency, Dixon told CoinDesk in an interview, worked closely with Stellar developers on features regulated financial institutions needed to issue assets onchain, including clawback functionality, compliance controls and transfer restrictions. Those tools were later built directly into the network.

"Some of the team has been working with Stellar for a long time," Dixon said.

The news landed as tokenization has become one of the dominant themes across both crypto and traditional finance, drawing interest from global banks and asset managers looking to move traditional financial instruments onto blockchain rails.

Tokenization refers to representing assets such as U.S. Treasury bonds, money market funds, stocks or private credit as digital tokens that can be issued, traded and settled on blockchains. Proponents argue the technology could shorten settlement times, free up collateral trapped in legacy processes and eventually allow markets to operate around the clock.

It's potentially a huge market. Standard Chartered projected $2 trillion in tokenized assets by 2028, while BCG and Ripple forecasted a $18.9 trillion market size by 2033.

Franklin Templeton's early bet on Stellar

Dixon argued that tokenized assets are only the visible layer of a broader infrastructure shift.

"Blockchain is excellent at books and records," she said. "Tokenization is the product outcome, but it's all these underlying components that are really important."

That focus on record-keeping was one reason Franklin Templeton selected Stellar for its onchain money market fund, BENJI. Dixon said the asset manager began exploring Stellar in 2019 and later launched the fund in 2021, aiming to place fund records on a single shared ledger rather than relying on multiple databases.

BENJI became one of the earliest examples of a regulated tokenized fund and helped pave the way for today's tokenized Treasury market, which has grown to roughly $15 billion with BlackRock, JPMorgan, Fidelity entering the ring.

Making public blockchains work for regulated finance

For institutions, however, moving assets onchain requires more than faster settlement.

Regulated firms must comply with securities laws, sanctions requirements and investor protections, creating demand for blockchain infrastructure that can support identity checks, transfer restrictions and other compliance controls.

That need for compliance-ready infrastructure is one reason Stellar's long-standing relationship with Securrency proved valuable, Dixon said.

Stellar's architecture allows issuers to add compliance, identity controls and privacy protections on top of an open network, she said. Asset issuers can decide whether transfers require know-your-customer (KYC) checks, whether assets can be frozen or clawed back and what transaction information remains visible.

"The base layer is always going to be open," Dixon said. "Then the institution gets to decide how compliance and privacy come into play."