BlackRock leads $47 million strategic funding round in tokenization firm Securitize

BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, led a $47 million strategic funding round for the tokenization firm Securitize. 

The alternative investment management firm Hamilton Lane, ParaFi Capital and Tradeweb Markets also contributed to the round, according to a Wednesday statement. BlackRock's Global Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships, Joseph Chalom, will also join the board of directors of Securitize following this raise. 

“At BlackRock, we believe that tokenization has the potential to drive a significant transformation in capital markets infrastructure. Our investment in Securitize is another step in the evolution of our digital assets strategy,” Chalom said in the statement. “We are pleased to lead this investment round alongside other participants and help foster innovation that will help meet the future needs of our clients.”

"Today’s announcement demonstrates the strong partnership we have with our investors to help reshape the future of finance," said Securitize Co-Founder and CEO Carlos Domingo told The Block. "As the leader in tokenizing real world assets, we are committed to driving the compliant digitalization of financial assets through next-generation blockchain technology. We’re grateful to our partners for believing in this transformation of capital markets and look forward to the day when every large asset manager launches their funds on blockchains."

Securitize and BUIDL

Securitize is a web3 firm that tokenizes real world assets (RWAs). It has worked with major players, such as investment firms KKR and Hamilton Lane, to provide tokenized exposure to assets. 

BlackRock launched a tokenized investment fund called the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) with Securitize in March of this year, The Block previously reported. Built on Ethereum, the fund invests in cash, U.S. Treasury bills and repurchase agreements, aiming to give investors daily dividends from yields by holding the on-chain token, the company statement continues. 

BUIDL amassed $160 million in inflows within its first week of launch and became a leading tokenized investment fund on April 30 after accruing around $375 million in assets under management. 

"Securitize has built cutting edge infrastructure that enables traditional assets to move onto the high speed, modern rails of blockchains — enabling greater transparency, immediate settlement, reduced counterparty risk, and heightened programmability,” said ParaFi Founder and Managing Partner Ben Forman in the release.

Update (May 1, 21:02 UTC): Added comment from Carlos Domingo.