The Bank of New York (BNY Mellon) announced it is preparing to enable 24/7 settlement for U.S. Treasuries by the end of 2026, as digital asset markets push traditional financial (TradFi) infrastructure toward continuous operation.
The bank is gearing up to launch tokenized U.S. Treasuries on its own blockchain and start pilot trading. Earlier this year, they already tested the waters with after-hours Treasury trades alongside stablecoin issuers like Ripple and OpenEden, proving that markets can keep moving 24/7.
The roadmap: Tokenization pilot and 24/7 settlement
The real deal? The bank’s goal is to enable around-the-clock settlement for both traditional and tokenized Treasuries in 2027. The move follows earlier this year when BNY Mellon completed a post-trade U.S. Treasury transaction involving stablecoin issuers, executed after the closure of the Fedwire Securities Service. The participants included RLUSD issued by Ripple and USDO issued by OpenEden.
BNY Mellon said that increased demand for stablecoin and tokenized Treasury funds for short-term U.S. Treasuries is driving the transition of the traditional settlement system to 24/7 operations.
Why this matters for tokenization and institutional adoption
This major move by the $62.6 trillion custodian is one of the biggest signs yet that TradFi is gearing up for blockchain-based market infrastructure. For the crypto community, this marks a real shift in the way digital assets and traditional finance relate to each other.
Tokenized Treasuries [basically real-world assets (RWAs) tied to U.S. debt] are now a $3 billion market. With 24/7 settlement, BNY Mellon is effectively linking the traditional finance world with the non-stop pace of crypto markets.
Why this is a $15.86 billion wake-up call
BNY Mellon’s latest play is basically the clearest proof we have seen that traditional finance is finally going all-in on tokenized Treasuries as a must-have asset class. That market has ballooned to roughly $15.86 billion in total value, making it the largest category in the broader RWA sector.
The speed of this growth is wild compared to just a year ago, back when the whole ecosystem was tiny. Tokenized Treasuries are carrying the team in the wider RWA market, which has now surpassed $34 billion. BlackRock‘s BUIDL fund has climbed over $2.5 billion, and JPMorgan has jumped in with its own tokenized money market fund, MONY, right on the Ethereum network.
BNY Mellon’s 24/7 settlement plan finally fixes the critical infrastructure problems that were holding tokenized Treasuries back from really hitting their stride. For anyone paying attention to RWAs, this serves as the perfect bridge connecting the $16 billion tokenized Treasury world with the massive $28 trillion traditional market; it’s crystal clear proof that tokenization has officially moved past the “experimental” phase and is now just part of how things work.
