Last week, Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) unveiled an innovative initiative, Citi Token Services, aimed at revolutionizing cash management and trade finance. Leveraging cutting-edge blockchain and smart contract technologies, this groundbreaking service is designed to offer digital asset solutions tailored for institutional clients. Citi has opted for a private and permissioned blockchain technology, fully owned and managed by the bank itself. Clients will not be required to host a blockchain node to access these transformative services, ensuring ease of use and accessibility in adopting these pioneering solutions.
Notably, Citi Token Services is set to seamlessly integrate tokenized deposits and smart contracts into Citi’s expansive global network, thereby elevating the core capabilities of cash management and trade finance.
In practical terms, Citi Token Services is poised to provide a suite of services including cross-border payments, liquidity management, and automated trade finance solutions, all available round the clock, 24/7. This development aligns perfectly with Citi’s ongoing commitment to advancing digital asset solutions within the financial industry through their pioneering work on the Regulated Liability Network, with the goal of creating interoperable digital asset solutions across multiple banks.
One standout application of Citi Token Services is its collaboration with Maersk and a canal authority, resulting in a digitized solution mirroring the functionalities of traditional bank guarantees and letters of credit in the trade finance ecosystem. The successful pilot showcased the seamless transfer of tokenized deposits, enabling instantaneous payments to service providers through smart contracts. This transformative technology promises to drastically reduce transaction processing times, potentially shifting from days to mere minutes, benefitting both buyers and sellers alike.
In the realm of cash management, Citi Token Services has initiated a global pilot program, empowering clients to transfer liquidity between Citi branches on a 24/7 basis. This initiative equips corporate treasurers with an innovative tool for managing global liquidity on a just-in-time, programmable basis, effectively diminishing frictions related to cut-off times and service window gaps.
Source : Citi