Global banking group Citi has entered into a partnership with SDX, aiming to tokenize $75 billion worth of shares that are not publicly traded and have yet to be made available via an IPO.
SDX, or SIX Digital Exchange, is the digital assets arm of Switzerland’s main stock exchange.
Citi will act as a custodian and issuer agent for late-stage, pre-IPO equities on SDX’s regulated CSD platform. The two groups announced their collaboration at the Point Zero Forum in Switzerland. The token is expected to go live in Q3, 2025.
“We are excited to welcome Citi to the SDX platform and together deliver this landmark project in the tokenization of private shares. This initiative will distinguish itself in the industry by using SDX’s regulated blockchain-based technology to enable the efficient distribution of shares in mature international private companies, which are expected to generate strong investor interest,” said SDX Head David News
“Switzerland’s regulatory framework and SDX’s infrastructure allows Citi to bring a new solution to market using technology to solve for challenges in private markets for issuers and investors,” said Marni McManus, who is Citi Country Officer & Head of Banking for Switzerland, Monaco, and Liechtenstein.
The partnership is expected to lend critical support to a significant asset class. Pre-IPO shares often have a lot of paperwork that encumbers investors from closing transactions in a timely manner, says CitiVentures’ digital assets emerging markets lead, Nisha Surendran, according to CoinDesk
