Agencies Clarify Capital Treatment of Tokenized Securities

Federal Reserve Press Releases

Published March 5th, 2026

Detected March 12th, 2026

Summary

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve Board, and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have issued frequently asked questions to clarify the capital treatment of tokenized securities. The guidance confirms that eligible tokenized securities should receive the same capital treatment as their non-tokenized counterparts.

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What changed

The federal banking agencies (FDIC, Federal Reserve, OCC) have jointly released answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) clarifying the capital treatment of tokenized securities. The guidance emphasizes that eligible tokenized securities will generally receive the same capital treatment as their traditional, non-tokenized forms under the existing capital rules. It also reiterates that the capital rule is technology-neutral, meaning the underlying technology used for issuance or transaction does not impact capital treatment.

While this FAQ provides clarification, banks holding tokenized securities are reminded of their obligation to apply sound risk management practices and comply with all applicable laws and regulations. This clarification is primarily informational and does not introduce new compliance obligations beyond existing risk management and regulatory adherence requirements.

What to do next

Review the FAQ on the capital treatment of tokenized securities
Ensure risk management practices for tokenized securities align with existing regulations

Source document (simplified)

Joint Press Release

March 05, 2026

Agencies clarify the capital treatment of tokenized securities

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Reserve Board
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
For release at 3:30 p.m. EST
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- The federal bank regulatory agencies today jointly issued answers to frequently asked questions to clarify the capital treatment of tokenized securities.

A security is often referred to as "tokenized" when ownership rights in the security are represented using distributed ledger technology. The answers to the frequently asked questions clarify that an eligible tokenized security should generally receive the same capital treatment as the non-tokenized form of the security under the capital rule. The agencies also clarified that the capital rule is technology neutral, and the technologies used to issue and transact in a security do not generally impact its capital treatment.

As with any exposure, banks holding tokenized securities must apply sound risk management practices and comply with applicable laws and regulations.