- CMB International Asset Management, a subsidiary of China Merchants Bank, has tokenized its $3.8 billion USD Money Market Fund on BNBBNB-- Chain, marking one of the largest real-world asset (RWA) tokenizations to date. The initiative, announced by BNB Chain on Wednesday, allows accredited investors to access the fund via CMBMINT and CMBIMINT tokens, which can be purchased using fiat or stablecoins and redeemed through DigiFT's infrastructure, Coinotag reports. The fund, which ranks first in Bloomberg's Asia-Pacific performance rankings for similar products as of October 2025, has seen its assets under management (AUM) grow from $2.9 billion in April to $3.6 billion by August, according to Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) data reported by Phemex.
The collaboration builds on CMBI's prior work with Singapore-based tokenization platform DigiFT, which tokenized the same fund on SolanaSOL-- in August. This move expands the fund's on-chain distribution, enabling investors to leverage the tokens across decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols such as VenusXVS-- Protocol and ListaDAO for lending, staking, and yield generation, as noted by Coinsurges. OnChain, an RWA infrastructure provider, supports compliance and liquidity management, while the BNB Chain blog explains that BNB Chain's "One BNB" architecture—comprising BNB Smart Chain, opBNB, and Greenfield—facilitates secure, low-cost execution and real-time finality.
The tokenization effort comes amid regulatory uncertainty. Recent reports indicate that mainland China's securities regulator has pressured Hong Kong brokerages to pause RWA projects, raising questions about compliance with local regulations. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) declined to comment when approached by Cointelegraph, while BNB Chain did not respond to requests for clarification, according to CryptoBriefing. Despite this, CMB International's Adam Bai emphasized that the partnership "extends our money market strategies to a broader global investor base" through "secure and compliant" blockchain infrastructure, as covered by Capalearning.
The fund's tokenization is part of BNB Chain's broader strategy to become a leading RWA platform. The network now hosts projects like Circle's USYC (a tokenized money market fund backed by U.S. Treasuries) and Matrixdock's XAUm (a gold-backed token), which saw $21 million in trading volume on PancakeSwapCAKE-- in 2024, according to Coingape. BNB Chain's RWA ecosystem has grown to include 1,540% in value over 30 days in August, outpacing EthereumETH-- and Solana in RWA growth, per Blockonomi.
The initiative underscores a shift in institutional finance toward blockchain integration. CMB International's fund, which invests at least 70% of its net asset value in USD-denominated short-term deposits and high-quality money market instruments, now offers real-time subscriptions and redemptions, bypassing traditional banking channels. DigiFT's smart contracts automate settlement, reducing reliance on intermediaries, while OnChain's infrastructure ensures compliance with regulatory requirements, as detailed in a BNB Chain blog post.
Analysts note that BNB Chain's low transaction fees and scalability make it an attractive platform for institutional-grade tokenization. The network's expanding RWA ecosystem includes partnerships with Franklin Templeton, Securitize, and OpenEdenEDEN--, alongside DeFi protocols like PancakeSwap and Venus Protocol. Together, these players form a multi-layered infrastructure for issuance, liquidity, and yield generation, according to research from Tiger Research.
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