DTCC says the deal, set to close within weeks, will position it as a leader in bridging best-in-class industry practices with advanced digital technology to encourage acceptance and adoption of digital assets.

Securrency will become a fully-owned subsidiary of DTCC and will operate under the name DTCC Digital Assets. Nadine Chakar, CEO of Securrency, will lead the unit and be joined by around 100 other staffers.

DTCC has a long history of exploring digital assets and distributed ledger technology. Last year, the post-trade giant's DLT-based alternative settlement platform went live in a parallel production environment.

It now says that Securrency's technology will fast-track development of its enterprise digital asset platform to unlock the power of institutional DeFi. DTCC will leverage the technology over time to embed digital assets within its existing products and services, develop new, regulatory-compliant blockchain-based offerings and explore use cases with the industry.

It also plans to licence the Securrency technology and offer professional services. Firms will be able to tap the technology to create new digital asset services alone or in collaboration with other market participants.

Frank La Salla, president, CEO and director, DTCC, says: “Securrency is an important strategic acquisition that will give us the technology to drive market-wide transformation by enabling end-to-end digital lifecycle processing for tokenized assets, digital currencies and other financial instruments.

"By bringing together DTCC’s commitment to providing market stability and our unparalleled network of financial market participants with the sophistication of the Securrency technology, we will be in a leading position to unlock the value of digital assets and help guide the industry through its digital transformation journey."