Citigroup to Launch Blockchain Tokenized Depositary Receipts for Private Shares

Citigroup plans to offer tokenized private-company shares to wealthy and institutional clients, beginning with foreign investors via blockchain-based settlement rails, according to reporting by the Wall Street Journal ^[1].

The bank is building a framework for trading shares of pre-IPO companies using tokenized depositary receipts, with discussions underway to secure involvement from large private enterprises ^[2].

Additional coverage says Citigroup will partner with Swiss digital exchange SDX to provide global investors access to private-market assets through blockchain, and that the offering is intended to expand beyond a single issuer ^[3].

CoinGape also reports that the initiative would include tokenized shares tied to private companies such as Anthropic and OpenAI, and mentions Ripple among the examples discussed ^[4].

Citigroup’s rollout centers on tokenized depositary receipts for pre-IPO equities, with reported partners and early client targeting focused on expanding blockchain access to private-company shares ^{[1] [2] [3]}.