The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation is moving DTC-custodied US Treasuries onto a blockchain for the first time, using the Canton network. The move taps into a network that already handles $6 trillion in real-world asset transactions. Separately, Lighter’s LIT platform launched this week with trading fee multiples that rival Hyperliquid’s — a sign of growing competition in the perpetuals space.
DTCC’s Treasury tokenization
DTCC said it will migrate US Treasury securities held by its DTC subsidiary onto Canton’s permissioned blockchain. The move effectively tokenizes the world’s deepest bond market, putting trillions in government debt onto a distributed ledger. Canton, built by the Digital Asset team, focuses on privacy and scalability for institutional use cases — a pitch that has resonated with large financial firms.
Canton’s $6 trillion footprint
The Canton network now processes $6 trillion in real-world asset transactions, according to the project. That volume covers tokenized money market funds, repo agreements, and other institutional assets. The DTCC deal is the biggest name yet to adopt Canton, and it signals that the infrastructure is moving beyond pilot phases into production for critical market plumbing.
Lighter’s LIT goes live
Lighter’s LIT platform launched trading with fee multiples comparable to Hyperliquid. The platform targets the perpetual futures market, where Hyperliquid has dominated by offering low fees and high throughput. Lighter’s fee structure suggests it intends to compete directly on cost, not just features. The launch comes as several L1 and L2 chains race to capture derivatives volume.
What’s next
DTCC hasn’t disclosed a timeline for when the Treasury tokenization will go live beyond the announcement. Lighter’s LIT is already accepting deposits and trades. For both projects, the test will be whether liquidity and adoption follow the initial launch — and whether regulators raise questions about systemic risk when the backbone of US debt markets moves on-chain.
