Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions her Department has had with institutional market participants on the adoption of (a) tokenised sovereign instruments and (b) associated standards.

My team regularly engages with the sector on issues relating to tokenisation in UK financial markets. In addition, we have had further discussions with participants in relation to our digital gilt instrument (DIGIT) pilot.

The Government is taking forward its DIGIT pilot which will be issued onto a digital securities platform within the digital securities sandbox (DSS). In April, the government issued a market engagement notice and is currently analysing responses ahead of launching an invitation to tender in the coming months.

Following the deadline for responses, my team has held constructive discussions with a range of industry groups and participants who responded and attended an industry roundtable hosted by UK Finance. This engagement with the market has provided valuable information to inform how a DIGIT pilot can help catalyse the adoption of DLT across UK financial markets.

The Government remains committed to working with the sector on tokenisation and the pilot DIGIT issuance, to effectively catalyse the adoption of DLT in UK financial markets.