The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has revealed plans to launch a new blockchain-based digital markets business that will use the technology behind cryptocurrencies to improve trading of traditional financial assets. “LSEG is exploring plans to create a complete digital market ecosystem that will enable capital to be raised and moved more promptly and cost-effectively across asset classes,” an LSEG spokesperson said. Murray Roos, head of capital markets at LSE Group, told the Financial Times that after nearly a year of exploring the feasibility of blockchain-based business, the firm has reached a “tipping point” and is preparing to move forward with its plans. The group is considering launching a unique legal entity for its digital marketplace business and hopes to make the project a reality next year, pending regulatory approval. LSEG is currently consulting with regulatory authorities in a number of jurisdictions, as well as the UK Government and the Treasury. Roos emphasized that LSEG is “not really building anything around crypto assets,” but instead focuses on using the blockchain to improve the security and accessibility of trading assets. “The idea is to use digital technology to make the process smoother, more streamlined, cheaper and more transparent … and to make sure it supports regulatory standards,” Roos told the Financial Times. A growing trend in asset tagging LSEG’s plans come amid growing interest in a real world asset brand in the financial sector. By facilitating shared ownership, asset tokenization not only increases liquidity, but also opens up access to assets that have traditionally been considered illiquid. Last June, the Avalanche Foundation launched a $50 million asset tokenization initiative, while Securitize brought tokenized securities to European markets in late July. At the same time, large institutional players like Bank of America have realized the potential of tokenization. In July, the international investment giant published a study predicting that the tokenization of traditional assets will transform financial and non-financial infrastructure, as well as public and private financial markets, over the next 5 to 15 years. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, until recently a crypto-skeptic, admitted last year that “the next generation of markets, the next generation of securities, is the tokenization of securities.”