Big Banks Join UK Finance to Test Tokenized Deposits Pilot

UK Finance has launched a live pilot for tokenized sterling deposits (GBTD) as part of efforts to test digital forms of commercial bank money involving six of the country’s biggest banks. 

The official announcement reveals that these digital deposits are essentially a digital form of traditional commercial bank money, offering the same “trust and regulatory protections” as regular deposits but with added benefits like faster payments and improved fraud prevention.

About the GBTD Pilot

The GBTD pilot, running until mid-2026, will test how tokenized money can be used in real-world scenarios. It focuses on three main use cases, including person-to-person payments on online marketplaces, remortgaging processes, and settlement of digital assets. It builds on the earlier work of the UK Regulated Liability Network (RLN) project.

For online marketplaces, the goal is to reduce fraud and increase confidence for buyers and sellers. In remortgaging, the project aims to make property transactions faster, more transparent, and less susceptible to conveyancing fraud. Tokenized deposits could streamline digital asset settlements with instant fund transfers.

Bank participants

Several major UK banks are participating in the GBTD pilot, including Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, NatWest, Nationwide, and Santander, with technical support from firms like Quant, EY, and Linklaters. 

Quant will provide the underlying technology for the pilot, building on its experience from the earlier Regulated Liability Network project. Quant’s work includes enabling programmable payments and ensuring interoperability between bank ledgers, Faster Payments, Open Banking, and tokenized platforms.

UK Finance emphasized that the pilot aims to give consumers and businesses more control over how money moves, while offering stronger safeguards against fraud. It also ties into broader government initiatives, such as potential digital gilt (DIGIT) and the National Payments Vision (NPV).

The system will work across different digital money platforms and payment networks. It includes a “tokenization-as-a-service” feature, which allows organizations without existing tokenised deposit capabilities to participate.

The project will also host regular events and webinars, giving stakeholders a chance to learn more about progress and get involved. The first webinar is scheduled for 6 October, where further details of the pilot will be shared.

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