Shinhan Asset Management partners Solana for offshore tokenized fund

On Aug. 21, South Korea's Shinhan Asset Management signed a four-party memorandum with the Solana Foundation, tokenization platform Etherfuse and decentralized exchange Orca to test a Korean won tokenized fund on the Solana blockchain, according to crypto.news. The proof of concept will cover the fund's issuance and distribution process, including know-your-customer checks, anti-money laundering controls, token issuance and onchain liquidity arrangements. The planned product would invest in short-term Korean won bonds and target overseas institutional investors. The participants have not announced the fund's size, expected yield or public launch date. The Solana Foundation said the model draws from BlackRock's BUIDL fund, referring to the blockchain-based distribution model rather than the same assets or legal rights.

Background

The announcement lands as South Korea prepares a regulatory framework for tokenized securities. The National Assembly passed amendments supporting tokenized securities on Jan. 15, recognizing distributed ledgers as valid securities registries and permitting qualifying investment contract securities to circulate through licensed securities companies. The Financial Services Commission said issuers will still need to satisfy existing securities registration and disclosure obligations, and unlicensed companies will not be allowed to broker tokenized securities. The amendments are expected to take effect one year after promulgation, with implementation anticipated in early 2027. Regulators are preparing account management infrastructure and investor protection rules before the rollout, according to the FSC's official statement. Solana has already attracted other Asian asset managers: SBI Global Asset Management launched a tokenized Japanese equity fund on Solana in July, targeting institutional and accredited investors through regulated tokenization platform DigiFT. Shinhan has also been testing more than one blockchain. On Aug. 14, the asset manager signed a separate agreement with Plume to develop a demonstration for a won-denominated tokenized fund. The parallel projects suggest Shinhan is examining different technical and distribution models rather than committing exclusively to Solana, per crypto.news.

What happened

Shinhan Asset Management signed a four-party memorandum on Aug. 21 to test a Korean won tokenized fund using the Solana blockchain, crypto.news reported. The agreement brings together Shinhan Asset Management, the Solana Foundation, tokenization platform Etherfuse and decentralized exchange Orca. The participants will conduct a proof of concept covering the fund's issuance and distribution process. The planned product would invest in short-term Korean won bonds and target overseas institutional investors. However, the participants have not announced the fund's size, expected yield or public launch date. The proof of concept will examine the steps needed to issue and distribute a regulated tokenized fund, including know-your-customer checks, anti-money laundering controls, token issuance and onchain liquidity arrangements. Shinhan will provide asset management and regulatory expertise. Etherfuse will supply infrastructure for creating and managing the tokenized assets. Orca will help design the liquidity system used to distribute or exchange the fund tokens on Solana. The Solana Foundation said the model draws from BlackRock's BUIDL fund, one of the largest tokenized money market products. The comparison refers to the blockchain-based distribution model and does not mean the proposed Shinhan fund will hold the same assets or offer the same legal rights. BlackRock's product primarily invests in U.S. Treasury bills, cash and repurchase agreements, while Shinhan's test concerns a Korean won product backed by short-term domestic bonds. Solana offers low transaction fees and rapid settlement, which could support frequent subscriptions, redemptions and transfers, though those technical features do not remove securities registration, custody or investor protection requirements. Solana said the existing tokenized real world asset market was worth about $36 billion, and the announcement cited a Boston Consulting Group projection suggesting the sector could reach as much as $30 trillion, according to the source text.

Market impact

The sources provide limited quantitative detail on market impact. Solana said the existing tokenized real world asset market was worth about $36 billion. The announcement also cited a Boston Consulting Group projection suggesting the sector could reach as much as $30 trillion, though the source text truncates the time horizon for that projection. No fund size, expected yield, fee structure or launch date was disclosed for the Shinhan product. No prices, trading volumes or capital flows tied to the announcement appear in the sources. The comparison to BlackRock's BUIDL fund is qualitative: the source describes BUIDL as one of the largest tokenized money market products, primarily investing in U.S. Treasury bills, cash and repurchase agreements, without giving its assets under management. The sources also do not quantify Solana's transaction fees or settlement times, describing them only as low and rapid. The only other dated market-adjacent data point is procedural: South Korea's tokenized securities amendments passed Jan. 15 and are expected to take effect one year after promulgation, with implementation anticipated in early 2027. Any market effect from the Shinhan proof of concept therefore remains prospective and unquantified in the provided texts.

Why it matters

The sources frame the Shinhan memorandum as a test of regulated fund distribution rather than a product launch. Because the proof of concept explicitly covers know-your-customer checks, anti-money laundering controls, token issuance and onchain liquidity, it addresses the compliance and market-structure steps that the FSC says remain necessary even after South Korea's amendments take effect. The FSC stated that issuers will still need to satisfy existing securities registration and disclosure obligations and that unlicensed companies will not be allowed to broker tokenized securities. Solana's low fees and rapid settlement could support frequent subscriptions, redemptions and transfers, but the source notes those features do not remove securities registration, custody or investor protection requirements. The parallel Plume agreement signed Aug. 14 suggests Shinhan is comparing technical and distribution models rather than committing exclusively to Solana; results could determine which infrastructure the manager uses after the regulatory framework becomes effective. The Solana Foundation's comparison to BlackRock's BUIDL fund signals a blockchain-based distribution model, not equivalent assets or legal rights, since BUIDL holds U.S. Treasury bills, cash and repurchase agreements while Shinhan's test concerns short-term Korean won bonds.