Janus Henderson Becomes Latest Asset Manager to Explore Securities Tokenization

Global asset manager Janus Henderson announced its entry into the securities tokenization space on Friday. This move could expand investment access to more investors.

In a statement, the US asset manager said it entered a deal to manage the $11m Anemoy Liquid Treasury Fund (LTF). This fund focuses on short-term US Treasury bills. It uses blockchain to tokenize shares, enabling fractional ownership and digital trading.

Further, this LTF will be tokenized using Centrifuge’s blockchain technology. Janus said that would allow it to be distributed to over $170b in idle capital on-chain.

Blockchain technology records each token’s ownership, transfers and transactions on an unchangeable ledger. Consequently, it boosts security, reduces fraud and automates processes using smart contracts.

The Financial Times first reported the development on Friday.

Janus Joins BlackRock, Fidelity in Managing Tokenized Treasury Funds

The firm will be assuming daily management for the Anemoy fund’s day-to-day operations through its subsidiary Tabula. This open-ended fund is also available to non-US professional investors.

It joins major asset managers such as BlackRock, Fidelity and Franklin Templeton, who are already managing tokenized Treasury and money market funds.

BlackRock’s fund quickly became the largest tokenized Treasury fund, overtaking Franklin Templeton’s offering. It attracted significant deposits, showcasing strong investor interest in tokenized assets.

Janus Exec Envisions Future of Finance on Blockchain

Nick Cherney, Janus Henderson’s innovation head, told the FT the move ensures the firm is prepared for the future. He also mentioned a significant opportunity to engage in and influence the future development of financial systems.

“I think it’s extremely likely that significant parts of the architecture of financial systems moves on to distributed ledger technology,” Cherney said.

Cherney noted that Janus Henderson sees significant advantages in how financial services are delivered, although the future development over the next 5-10 years is unclear.

He suggested that tokenized structures could be more transformative than ETFs, predicting that decentralized blockchain technology might impact ETFs much like ETFs have changed mutual funds.