Ripple, JPMorgan, Mastercard, and Ondo Finance Complete First Near-Instant Cross-Border Tokenized Treasury Settlement
In a move that signals a new chapter for institutional crypto adoption, JPMorgan, Mastercard, Ripple, and Ondo Finance have successfully completed a pilot that settled a tokenized U.S. Treasury redemption across banks and borders in near real time — a first for the industry, according to the firms involved.
The transaction saw Ripple redeem its Ondo Short-Term US Government Treasuries (OUSG) tokens, issued on the XRP Ledger, through a coordinated pipeline: Mastercard's Multi-Token Network relayed settlement instructions to JPMorgan's blockchain unit, Kinexys, which then delivered U.S. dollars directly to Ripple's bank account in Singapore. Notably, the dollar leg moved through traditional banking channels rather than entirely on-chain, a hybrid design that allows institutions to leverage blockchain speed while keeping fiat flows within regulated corridors.
OUSG, one of the largest tokenized Treasury products by market cap, has been available on the XRP Ledger since earlier this cycle, part of a broader push to widen institutional access to tokenized real-world assets. The four firms framed the test as a milestone: the first time tokenized assets were settled across borders and banks in near real time outside conventional banking hours.
“This pilot demonstrates how blockchain-based settlement can operate alongside existing financial infrastructure to deliver speed and transparency without compromising regulatory compliance,” said Zack Chestnut, head of commercial at Kinexys by J.P. Morgan, in a statement.
The broader tokenized Treasury market now stands at roughly $15 billion in outstanding value, according to data from RWA.xyz. While still a fraction of the $30 trillion U.S. Treasury market, the segment has grown sharply since 2024 as banks and asset managers test settlement on public blockchains. Major infrastructure players are doubling down: The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) announced this week it will launch a tokenization service in October, with Treasury bills and bonds among eligible assets. Nasdaq is also preparing for tokenized stock and ETF trading.
For JPMorgan, the redemption marks another step in a string of Kinexys deployments covering foreign-exchange settlement, deposit tokens, and corporate-dollar transfers. Ripple, meanwhile, has positioned the XRP Ledger with permissioned domains and zero-knowledge proof tooling to cater to regulated users.
Industry Reactions
“This is exactly the kind of real-world use case that will finally get traditional finance to take blockchain seriously,” said Elena Marchetti, a fintech analyst at a London-based consultancy. “It’s not about replacing banks overnight — it’s about making the existing system faster and cheaper. That’s a win-win.”
But not everyone is convinced. Marcus Delgado, a former Wall Street trader turned crypto critic, was blunt: “So JPMorgan still controls the dollar leg, and Ripple gets to say they did a ‘first.’ It’s a glorified wire transfer with extra steps and a press release. Call me when they cut out the middlemen entirely — then I’ll be impressed.”
Meanwhile, Sarah Lin, a product manager at a digital asset infrastructure firm, emphasized the operational significance: “Settling outside banking hours is a huge deal for global treasuries. If this becomes standard, it could compress settlement cycles from days to minutes for cross-border corporate payments. That’s not hype — that’s infrastructure evolution.”
The pilot comes amid growing regulatory clarity in major jurisdictions, with the EU's MiCA framework and ongoing U.S. stablecoin legislation creating a more predictable environment for tokenized asset pilots. As more institutions test these rails, the line between traditional finance and decentralized infrastructure continues to blur.
Read the original story: Ripple, JPMorgan & Mastercard Pull Off First Tokenized Treasury Deal by Phil Haunhorst at beincrypto.com