KUALA LUMPUR, 18 December 2025 — CIMB Group Holdings Bhd has reaffirmed its commitment to develop and scale tokenised financial services, spanning tokenised assets, tokenised settlement solutions and next-generation payment rails, as part of Malaysia’s broader push to integrate tokenisation into the financial ecosystem.
The group said in a statement that its initiatives will be rolled out in phases through the Securities Commission Malaysia’s industry pilot programme on securities tokenisation, an industry sandbox framework designed to test and validate tokenised instruments under a regulated environment.
CIMB also noted it will engage Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to seek admission into the Digital Asset Innovation Hub (DAIH), a collaborative platform intended to support experimentation with digital asset solutions and explore practical use cases within Malaysia’s financial markets.
Strategic Vision and Industry Role
CIMB Group Chief Executive Officer Novan Amirudin said the bank is “pleased to play a leading role in advancing Malaysia’s evolution towards a modern, resilient financial market infrastructure.” He added that strengthening digital and tokenisation capabilities aligns with the bank’s Forward30 strategic plan, which emphasises digital transformation, expanded market access and inclusive financial innovation.
As a near-term milestone, CIMB has committed to participating in Khazanah Nasional Bhd’s and the Securities Commission’s tokenised sukuk issuance pilot project, supporting multiple streams from structuring and execution to custody and full lifecycle services. The pilot projects are expected to progress through 2026 with a phased build-out aligned to regulatory and operational readiness.
Policy and Regulatory Context
Malaysia is actively crafting a framework for asset tokenisation and digital finance innovation. Bank Negara Malaysia’s recent discussion paper on asset tokenisation outlines a three-year roadmap for responsible innovation, incorporating concept validation, pilot testing and eventual regulatory policy development in collaboration with industry stakeholders.
This regulatory momentum mirrors global trends, where tokenised financial products, including securities, deposits and stable-value instruments, are gradually being tested in regulated sandboxes to promote efficiency, transparency and broader market participation.
The Ledger Asia View:
CIMB’s push into tokenised financial services underscores Malaysia’s growing ambition to become a regional hub for digital finance innovation. By aligning banking capabilities with evolving regulatory frameworks and pilot programmes, the group is positioning itself for early advantage in tokenised capital markets, next-generation payment infrastructure and digital settlement solutions. For investors and corporate clients, this signals an impending shift in how financial products are issued, traded and settled, with tokenisation poised to enhance liquidity, access and operational efficiency across the region.
