Key Takeaways
- • Deutsche Bank's Head of Digital Assets and Currencies Transformation, Sabih Behzad, says digital assets and tokenisation are moving closer to regular real-world use after more than a decade of experimentation, with the bank now treating the initiative as a board-level priority.
- • Tokenised money (stablecoins and tokenised deposits) and tokenised collateral are the products gaining the most traction, with intraday repo cited as a major opportunity.
- • Behzad identifies technology risk, cybersecurity around private key management, financial crime, and fragmented regulation as the main obstacles, and argues that regulation is an enabler of scale.
- • Partnerships between banks, which bring scale and trust, and fintechs, which bring speed and technical expertise, are described as critical to reaching scale.
- • Behzad expects the major shift over the next three to five years to be the move to intraday settlement, with near-instant settlement reducing risk and costs for clients.
Summary
According to a Deutsche Bank article based on an interview with Sabih Behzad, Head of Digital Assets and Currencies Transformation, digital assets and tokenisation are edging closer to regular real-world use. Regulators are increasingly focused on how tokenised money, securities and collateral could reshape market infrastructure, and banks are working with standard setters to build the infrastructure needed for scale. The remarks were made on the CryptoReg Insights podcast, recorded on 8 April 2026 and hosted by Polina Evstifeeva.
Behzad said the bank had examined digital assets and distributed ledger technology for several years but had not formalised the work under a single banner until recently. Triggers included client interest and a drive to make internal operations faster and more transparent. He said the bank's move was not driven by any single competitor, noting that the sector depends on network effects, with banks and infrastructure providers such as central securities depositories needing to move together. Internally, the bank sought more efficient processes across issuance, trading, settlement and custody.
On products, Behzad said tokenised money, including stablecoins and tokenised deposits, is a major focus. Tokenised collateral was highlighted as a clear use case: collateral movement is currently slow, sometimes taking several days to settle and prone to mismatches, and tokenisation can offer greater precision and speed. He also pointed to intraday markets, particularly intraday repo, as a significant opportunity.
On risk, Behzad cited technology risk as significant, recommending institutions start small, prove capability and expand, with cybersecurity around data storage and private key security as key concerns. He also flagged regulatory fragmentation across jurisdictions and financial crime risk, while saying the regulatory environment is more favourable than before. He cited the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation as a strong foundation and stated, "Innovation without regulation simply doesn't scale." He also described banks and fintechs as complementary partners, with banks providing trust and scale and fintechs bringing speed and technical capability.
Behzad said standardisation for interoperability and greater regulatory alignment remain necessary for scale, though full global standardisation is unrealistic. He suggested sovereign issuance of tokenised securities could accelerate development. Looking three to five years ahead, he expects the shift to intraday settlement to be the major change, reducing risk, improving efficiency and lowering costs. He advised patience, noting progress has taken longer than expected but is now accelerating.
Behzad said the bank had examined digital assets and distributed ledger technology for several years but had not formalised the work under a single banner until recently. Triggers included client interest and a drive to make internal operations faster and more transparent. He said the bank's move was not driven by any single competitor, noting that the sector depends on network effects, with banks and infrastructure providers such as central securities depositories needing to move together. Internally, the bank sought more efficient processes across issuance, trading, settlement and custody.
On products, Behzad said tokenised money, including stablecoins and tokenised deposits, is a major focus. Tokenised collateral was highlighted as a clear use case: collateral movement is currently slow, sometimes taking several days to settle and prone to mismatches, and tokenisation can offer greater precision and speed. He also pointed to intraday markets, particularly intraday repo, as a significant opportunity.
On risk, Behzad cited technology risk as significant, recommending institutions start small, prove capability and expand, with cybersecurity around data storage and private key security as key concerns. He also flagged regulatory fragmentation across jurisdictions and financial crime risk, while saying the regulatory environment is more favourable than before. He cited the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation as a strong foundation and stated, "Innovation without regulation simply doesn't scale." He also described banks and fintechs as complementary partners, with banks providing trust and scale and fintechs bringing speed and technical capability.
Behzad said standardisation for interoperability and greater regulatory alignment remain necessary for scale, though full global standardisation is unrealistic. He suggested sovereign issuance of tokenised securities could accelerate development. Looking three to five years ahead, he expects the shift to intraday settlement to be the major change, reducing risk, improving efficiency and lowering costs. He advised patience, noting progress has taken longer than expected but is now accelerating.
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