Key Insights:
- Aviva Investors expands its £22 billion fund offering as Ripple news highlights XRPL adoption.
- Aviva invests £50 million as its two tokenized fund classes surpass £86 million.
- The tokenized sterling fund retains daily liquidity and existing investor protections.
Ripple news centers on Aviva Investors’ new tokenized share class for its £22 billion Sterling Liquidity Fund.
The asset manager announced the launch with Ripple, placing the new class on the XRP Ledger. The announcement follows July’s tokenization of Aviva’s U.S. dollar liquidity fund. In addition, the class adds digital wallet access without changing the fund’s investment terms.
The sterling fund is Aviva Investors’ largest, with approximately £22 billion in assets under management. That figure covers the entire fund, not just its tokenized class.
In addition to Ripple news, Aviva has invested £50 million in the new sterling class, according to the announcement. Together, the two tokenized classes hold more than £86 million in investments.
Ripple News: How the Tokenized Share Class Works
Aviva uses a digital twin model to connect tokenized shares with its existing fund. Under this arrangement, blockchain records signify investor holdings while the original fund remains off-chain.
The new class, therefore, adds a digital access layer without replacing the underlying investment structure. Eligible investors can access the class through digital wallets, Aviva said.
Aviva said the class retains the same investment objective, risk profile, liquidity characteristics, and regulatory protections as conventional shares.
The Ireland-domiciled fund remains a UCITS money market fund and continues targeting low-risk returns. It invests in high-grade, short-term debt instruments denominated in British pounds. Daily liquidity also remains part of the fund’s established terms.
The conventional sterling fund launched in 2002, before its new tokenized class. Despite the new access method, custody of the underlying investments stays separate.
The Bank of New York Mellon remains custodian of the fund’s underlying assets. That arrangement separates asset custody from the tokens used to represent shareholdings.
XRP Ledger Provides the Issuance Infrastructure
Ripple said the XRP Ledger supports issuance and management of the sterling fund’s tokenized class. The company described its transactions as fast and low-cost, while identifying the network as energy efficient.
They cited more than four billion transactions processed since 2012. XRPL supports nearly eight million active wallets and more than 130 independent validators, they said.
Beyond the blockchain infrastructure in the Ripple news, Aviva retained support from companies involved in July’s dollar launch. Komainu, a regulated institutional digital asset custodian, participated alongside Licuido.
Licuido provides tokenization and trading infrastructure for real-world assets, including investment products. Aviva said the resulting structure operates within existing regulatory frameworks.
Aviva and Ripple Discuss Future Fund Distribution
Following the Ripple news announcement, Aviva Investors CEO Mark Versey said the second launch reflects the company’s plans to expand its tokenized offerings.
He credited the partnership with Ripple and said the companies would continue examining further applications.
Aviva said the two offerings place it among Europe’s largest providers of tokenized money market funds. Both offerings use tokenized representations of existing funds rather than entirely new underlying portfolios.
Ripple executive Nigel Khakoo linked the launch to broader discussions about round-the-clock market access and real-time settlement.
Khakoo said Ripple helps institutions move, manage, hold, and tokenize value through the network. The sterling fund’s stated terms, however, continue to provide daily liquidity. That distinction separates the fund’s existing investment terms from the network’s operating capabilities.
