Asia-Pacific banks are becoming more comfortable with tokenisation than with cryptocurrency, but that distinction may become harder to sustain as both markets move from pilots to operating infrastructure. The operating rails needed to support tokenised funds, bonds and deposits are closely related to the capabilities banks must confront when deciding whether to offer regulated crypto services.

Gerald Goh, co-founder and chief executive officer of Sygnum Asia Pacific, argues that many institutions are misreading the sequence of adoption. Banks no longer need to decide whether digital assets will survive. They need to decide whether to build the infrastructure, governance and client proposition required to…