Tokenised deposits, settlement speed, and liquidity management head the A$80 billion fund's new agenda
Settlement timelines fell from days to minutes in the tokenized carbon credit experiment Northern Trust ran with Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC) under Australia's Project Acacia.
Northern Trust and CSC, one of Australia's largest superannuation funds, have now signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore opportunities to advance digital investment infrastructure and support innovation across institutional markets.
The two organizations said in a joint announcement.
The MoU establishes a framework for collaboration focused on emerging technologies including tokenisation, digital assets, and enhanced digital cash capabilities.
The joint announcement lists tokenised deposits, regulated settlement assets, and other digital payment mechanisms among the areas the parties intend to examine, with liquidity management, settlement efficiency, and interoperability between traditional financial infrastructure and emerging digital asset ecosystems as stated objectives.
The organizations also intend to establish an ongoing knowledge-sharing framework.
Digital assets, tokenisation and digital money open a route to modernising investment infrastructure, according to Justin Chapman, group head of strategic partnerships, digital assets and financial markets at Northern Trust.
The joint announcement quoted Chapman on extending the CSC collaboration to examine how the technology fits institutional investing.
Paul Abraham, chief of investment services at CSC, said in the same announcement that the fund is examining technologies with the potential to "enhance efficiency, transparency, and resilience across investment operations."
The Northern Trust collaboration will test how emerging technologies apply in institutional investment markets, according to Abraham.
CSC served more than 750,000 members and managed over A$80bn in funds as of June 30, per the announcement, which puts Northern Trust's assets under custody and administration at US$20tn and its assets under management at US$2tn on the same date.
Project Acacia opened with a November 2024 consultation paper from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC).
The RBA and DFCRC named participants on July 10, 2025, selecting 24 use cases: 19 pilots using real money and real assets, and five proof-of-concept cases using simulated transactions.
Northern Trust was one of 14 lead use case participants, alongside ANZ, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and Westpac.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission granted regulatory relief the same day to allow participants to test tokenized asset transactions.
Northern Trust's use case ran with CSC, Swift, and Westpac, the firm said in a May 27 commentary.
It describes delivery-versus-payment settlement coordinated through synchronization rather than requiring asset and cash on a single ledger, with Swift synchronizing between Westpac's BT Financial wealth platform and blockchain-based transfers on Northern Trust's Matrix Zenith platform.
Voluntary carbon credits were selected for their lower trading velocity and stable pricing.
Existing commercial bank money can support tokenized asset settlement today, Northern Trust concluded.
The RBA and DFCRC published their final report on May 18, covering 20 tested use cases settled using exchange settlement account balances, a pilot wholesale central bank digital currency, tokenized commercial bank deposits, and stablecoins.
The report identifies challenges to scaling tokenized markets and outlines a follow-up program including a possible regulatory sandbox for digital financial market infrastructure and RBA consultation on adapting its settlement infrastructure.
Tālis Putniņš, DFCRC co-CEO and chief scientist, cited research in that release estimating digital finance innovation could deliver A$24bn in annual economic gains for Australia.
