DRW and Marex Execute First Canton OTC Swap on Tokenized iBoxx Index

S&P Dow Jones Indices, Kaiko and Derivnex on October 13, 2026 announced the completion of the first over-the-counter (OTC) swap transaction on the Canton Network. The total return swap, executed on Derivnex between DRW and Marex, references S&P DJI’s iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade Index, which Kaiko tokenized on Canton.

The companies describe the transaction as the first OTC derivative to reference a fully tokenized index on distributed ledger infrastructure. It demonstrates how benchmark data, licensing, trade representation and valuation can be connected within privacy-enabled infrastructure designed for institutional markets, according to the announcement.

OTC swaps are privately negotiated contracts that allow counterparties to gain or manage exposure to an asset or index without owning it directly. Managing a swap over its lifecycle typically involves multiple systems, bilateral communications and ongoing reconciliation between counterparties.

Through Derivnex, the trade was represented on Canton as a smart contract containing the transaction terms and designed to remain with the trade throughout its lifecycle. The smart contract gives DRW and Marex a shared, synchronized record for managing valuations and other swap lifecycle events.

George Harrington, CEO of Derivnex, said OTC derivatives are among the largest markets in institutional finance, but much of the infrastructure supporting them remains fragmented. “Derivnex gives counterparties a common digital representation of a trade from affirmation through its full lifecycle,” he said. Completing the first OTC swap on Canton shows how that model can work in a live institutional market, he added.

Cameron Drinkwater, Chief Product Operating Officer at S&P DJI, said the transaction shows how established benchmark infrastructure can support new institutional market structures. “Pairing a flagship index with controlled digital distribution through Kaiko extends our credit franchise into on-chain finance, building on more than two decades of liquidity, transparency and tradability on iBoxx benchmarks while preserving trusted rigor and governance,” he said.

Kaiko CEO Ambre Soubiran said the transaction demonstrates how tokenized benchmark infrastructure can support new institutional markets and products while preserving the licensing, governance and operational standards required by financial institutions. Nilesh Jethwa, CEO of Marex Solutions, described the transaction as a practical example of how OTC derivatives can be represented and managed on distributed ledger infrastructure, in line with Marex’s focus on bridging traditional finance and digital assets. He said it shows how new technology can support more coordinated and transparent workflows while preserving the controls institutional market participants require.

Tokenized Benchmark and Valuation

Kaiko tokenized the iBoxx USD Liquid Investment Grade Index on Canton. The token combines the benchmark data with access permissions and usage rules, in a design intended to let authorized participants consume the index data within digital financial workflows while preserving S&P DJI’s licensing and intellectual-property controls.

For this transaction, Kaiko also distributed the signed S&P DJI official index values that Derivnex uses to value the position throughout its lifecycle. According to the announcement, the tokenized benchmark and pricing infrastructure together allow the index to support a live OTC derivative transaction on distributed ledger infrastructure.

The companies state that the sample transaction gives benchmark providers a controlled and auditable way to distribute index intellectual property across new institutional markets and products. It also gives trading platforms and counterparties a standardized way to consume benchmark data within their existing transaction and lifecycle workflows.

Common Domain Model and Planned Collateral Functions

Derivnex incorporates the Common Domain Model (CDM), which provides a standardized digital representation of derivatives transactions and lifecycle events. Built on Canton, the platform enables bilateral OTC counterparties to coordinate transaction workflows while maintaining the confidentiality required by institutional markets.

Future functionality is expected to connect Derivnex-managed positions with digital cash and collateral on Canton, enabling margin, collateral and contractual payments to move within the same infrastructure as the underlying transaction, according to the companies.

The swap builds on earlier tokenization work between S&P DJI and Kaiko. On March 31, 2026, the two companies announced the tokenization of the iBoxx U.S. Treasuries Index on the Canton Network, which they described as the first time a major index provider made a financial benchmark available as a native digital asset, with embedded index data distribution, licensing and permissioning. Under that framework, the tokenized index is not an investable asset: it resides onchain as a non-fungible token encapsulating licensing rights and index programmable data feeds, intended for integration into digital native financial products. S&P DJI retains full control over index distribution and use, supported by the intellectual-property protections relied upon in traditional markets, and holds exclusive minting authority over iBoxx tokens so that only authorized tokens are created and distributed.

On September 14, 2026, S&P Global announced (SPGI ) a strategic investment in Kaiko, made through S&P Global Ventures as part of an extension of Kaiko’s Series B round. Earlier in September 2026, S&P DJI and Kaiko had combined their crypto index capabilities into a single co-branded suite, the S&P Kaiko Digital Asset Indices. According to the September announcement, Kaiko supports more than 250 financial firms, institutions and regulators worldwide and recently acquired Amberdata and Cometh.