EquiLend’s Digital Prime Bet: How Tokenized Lending Is Attracting Institutional Giants

Wall Street's back-office engine just placed its chips on blockchain. EquiLend—the $2.4 trillion securities lending platform behind giants like Goldman and BlackRock—is rolling out Digital Prime. It's not a side project. It's a full-scale institutional gateway into tokenized lending.

The Old Guard's New Playbook

Forget crypto bros in hoodies. This is about pension funds, insurers, and asset managers seeking yield in a stale market. Digital Prime wraps traditional assets—bonds, equities, funds—into blockchain tokens. Lenders earn interest. Borrowers get liquidity. The ledger does the rest—settling trades in minutes, not days, and slashing counterparty risk. No more faxed confirmations or tangled reconciliations.

Why Institutions Are Pushing In Now

Regulatory clarity is finally catching up. The SEC's recent guidance on digital asset securities gave firms the green light. Basel III capital requirements make efficient collateral management a must-have. Tokenization delivers—unlocking trapped capital and creating programmable, 24/7 markets. It's finance's version of automating the factory floor.

The Cynical Take

Of course, Wall Street only innovates when profits are at stake—or when clients demand it. After years of dismissing crypto as a 'fad,' the same firms now race to build the plumbing. A classic case of 'if you can't beat them, tokenize them.'

The bottom line? Tokenized lending isn't coming. It's here. And the institutions aren't just dipping a toe—they're building the pool.

EquiLend seeks to align workflows with NGT and 1Source post-trade platforms

EquiLend has made a strategic investment in Digital Prime Technologies, extending its infrastructure-first approach into tokenized assets, digital securities & crypto. Early focus will be on delivering connectivity across trading, post-trade & data.https://t.co/MtQ8bfDKtj pic.twitter.com/pGHsgGhAeE

— EquiLend (@EquiLend) December 17, 2025

EquiLend confirmed that the initiative will focus on Digital Prime’s institutional lending network, Tokenet. Both firms believe the lending network will introduce new features like regulated stablecoin collateral.

According to the announcement, Digital Prime’s lending network supports multi-custodian and multi-collateral lifecycle management. Tokenet also supports exposure monitoring and institutional reporting. EquiLend added that the lending network is looking to add more tokenized instruments in its future phases.

“As digital asset adoption accelerates, market participants increasingly expect a seamless, unified experience across traditional and digital workflows. Institutions expect governance, transparency, and straight-through processing in every asset class.”

–Rich Grossi, CEO of EquiLend.

Grossi said investing in Digital Prime advances the firm’s infrastructure model to tokenized assets and digital markets. He also believes the initiative will position the data and analytics company to support clients as its market grows.

Nick Delikaris, Chief Product Officer at EquiLend, acknowledged that the investment will enable EquiLend to extend its market-lending infrastructure into tokenized assets and digital assets. He said it will provide the same transparency, institutional difficulty, and automation that the firm’s clients rely on. 

James Runnels, co-founder and CEO of Digital Prime Technologies, also championed the partnership. He stated that EquiLend’s investment will help the U.S.-regulated provider of institutional crypto financing scale thoughtfully as it focuses on compliance, risk management, and transparency for clients.

According to the report, EquiLend aims to align its workflows with its NGT and the 1Source post-trade platform. The firm noted that the initiative will involve routing aggregated activity to EquiLend’s Data & Analytics. The financial technology company believes it will enhance market transparency and operational efficiency, driven by a reduction in settlement cycles and the modernization of financial activities.

EquiLend ‘s investment comes as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission extended compliance deadlines for securities lending and short position reporting requirements. The SEC stated that the extended rules apply to individuals entering into securities loan agreements.

U.S SEC extends compliance deadlines for securities lending

The SEC has extended Rule 10c-1a compliance deadlines to 2028, but our focus hasn’t changed. At EquiLend, we’re continuing to enhance our 10c-1a solution, so clients are ready ahead of the deadline—not just compliant, but confident.

Read our announcement: https://t.co/q2MbewBxmc pic.twitter.com/mhCaRL7X5G

— EquiLend (@EquiLend) December 5, 2025

The government agency pushed the Securities Lending Reporting rule to September 28, 2028. The SEC also extended the Public dissemination date to March 29, 2029. 

On the Short Position Reporting rule, the SEC extended the reporting date to January 2, 2028. The agency also requires the first filing to be made within 12 calendar days after January of the same year. The extended rules will only apply to institutional investment managers.

The SEC argued that the temporary extensions will serve the public interest and protect investors, as the Commission will be able to amend the rules further. The agency stated that the extension provides it with time to respond to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals’ opinion regarding reassessment of the cumulative economic impact of such rules. 

EquiLend said that the extended timelines don’t alter its approach, and it remains committed to establishing reporting solutions that meet regulatory requirements. The firm added that it’s actively tracking the SEC’s review process and any potential amendments in the future. 

EquiLend promised to incorporate those changes into its product development over the coming months. The firm said that the initiative will ensure clients have compliant and operationally efficient reporting tools in place ahead of the deadline.

The financial technology company acknowledged that the temporary extensions provide an opportunity to refine its implementation strategies and testing protocols. The firm also believes that early engagement with reporting solutions can reduce operational pressures ahead of expected deadlines.

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