India launches Demat 2.0 for corporate bond tokenization

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have introduced Demat 2.0, a pilot infrastructure for issuing and trading tokenized corporate bonds. The system integrates with existing regulated securities markets and the RBI’s wholesale digital rupee to enable atomic delivery-versus-payment settlement. Three companies have already issued $116 million in tokenized bonds, with the system allowing for same-day funding and automated coupon payments via smart contracts.