Marketnode Targets Asian Private Wealth With On-Chain Infrastructure
Asset quality and investor rights must take priority over the mechanics of tokenisation if digital asset platforms want to capture the Asian private wealth market. That is the core argument Andrew Scott, Head of Digital Assets at Marketnode, made during his appearance at the Hubbis Digital Wealth Forum in Singapore, Hubbis reported.
While industry projections indicate that tokenised real-world assets could surge to approximately $2.3 trillion by 2030, according to a report by Morgan Stanley, Scott argued that creating a digital token is a minor technological hurdle. Instead, Marketnode focuses its resources on originating high-quality assets and establishing rigorous legal frameworks that connect those assets securely to blockchain-based portfolios.
Institutional Shareholders Provide Long-Term Runway
Marketnode operates as a Singapore-headquartered digital market infrastructure provider designed to scale tokenised products. Its corporate structure bridges traditional financial institutions and digital asset innovation. The platform began as a joint venture between Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Temasek. It subsequently expanded its shareholder base in 2024 with participation from HSBC during its Series A funding round, followed by Euroclear.
Scott described the shareholder registry as unusually conventional for a digital assets business. He noted that this heavy institutional backing provides the platform with the time and patience necessary to build infrastructure with a long-term horizon. Rather than rushing products to market based purely on short-term trading trends, Marketnode is engineering an investment ecosystem tailored to the long-term preferences of private wealth clients.
Expanding Access Versus Improving Operational Efficiency
The firm concentrates its product development on two distinct avenues: opening new asset classes to underserved investors and upgrading the plumbing of existing financial instruments. In the first category, Scott pointed to private credit, hedge funds, and selected digital asset strategies as areas where tokenisation can widen access for clients who previously faced high entry barriers.
In the second category, tokenisation serves to streamline established workflows. Scott highlighted a joint initiative involving HSBC’s structured product notes programme. By shifting structured notes onto digital infrastructure, Marketnode aims to slash settlement times from ten days to two days. This compression returns eight days of working capital to corporate issuers and investors alike, illustrating the tangible operational gains that justify overhauling legacy systems.
Morgan Stanley Report Warns of Revenue Pressures for Wealth Managers
While infrastructure providers modernize back-end processes, the broader wealth management sector faces significant structural shifts. Morgan Stanley’s report cautions that the rapid expansion of digital forms of money and tokenised assets threatens net interest income, which accounts for 25% to 30% of total revenue for traditional wealth managers.
The report notes that digital adoption and stablecoins could challenge this vital revenue stream. However, it also highlights offsetting opportunities. Wealth managers may offset these pressures by allowing clients to borrow against a broader, more flexible set of tokenised collateral across multiple platforms. Asset managers, meanwhile, are focusing on near-term deployments like tokenised money market funds and equities to distribute products efficiently through digital channels.
Generational Wealth Transfer Drives On-Chain Demand
Scott expects structural demand for on-chain portfolios to accelerate as intergenerational wealth transfers sweep across Asia. Younger investors, who manage much of their daily lives through digital interfaces, will naturally demand digital-asset infrastructure for their wealth management needs.
He urged wealth managers to engage with these technologies immediately rather than waiting for client demand to force their hand. By examining product structures, investor legal rights, and operational efficiencies today, firms can position themselves to retain clients and assets as digital-first wealth platforms capture a larger share of the market.
Frequently Asked Questions About Tokenisation in Wealth Management
What specific asset classes is Marketnode targeting for private wealth clients?
Marketnode is targeting private credit, hedge funds, selected digital asset strategies, and structured products such as HSBC’s structured product notes programme, according to Andrew Scott.
How much are tokenised real-world assets projected to grow by 2030?
A report by Morgan Stanley projects that tokenised real-world assets will grow from approximately $40 billion to about $2.3 trillion by 2030.
Which financial institutions hold ownership stakes in Marketnode?
Marketnode’s shareholder register includes the Singapore Exchange (SGX), Temasek, HSBC—which joined during a 2024 Series A round—and Euroclear.
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