Federated Hermes and Prometheum have formed a strategic partnership to bring tokenized investment funds into traditional U.S. brokerage distribution, with their first product targeted for the first quarter of 2027. The model is designed to let broker-dealers offer blockchain-based securities through familiar brokerage infrastructure rather than requiring investors to move onto a separate crypto-native venue. Federated Hermes reported $911.6 billion in assets under management as of June 30.
According to the official partnership announcement, Federated Hermes will provide the investment products while Prometheum’s regulated subsidiaries handle different parts of their distribution and post-trade lifecycle. The firms have not yet disclosed which fund will be tokenized first, which blockchain it will use or who will be eligible to invest. The stated launch window therefore remains a planned commercial milestone rather than an operational product today.
Tokenized Funds Move Into Existing Brokerage Accounts
ProFinancial will support distribution, while Prometheum Capital will provide custody, clearing and settlement and make the funds available to introducing broker-dealers through correspondent clearing. That structure inserts tokenized securities into workflows that broker-dealers already use for customer accounts instead of rebuilding the investor-distribution layer around blockchain wallets. Prometheum Capital already offers omnibus and fully disclosed clearing models for firms seeking access to digital assets.
Prometheum also operates an alternative trading system for digital securities, but secondary trading should remain separate from the announced Federated Hermes arrangement. Issuance, distribution, custody, clearing and secondary liquidity are distinct stages of a security’s lifecycle, and the October 13 announcement only explicitly assigns distribution and post-trade responsibilities for the planned products. Prometheum itself describes ATS access as part of its broader securities infrastructure rather than a guaranteed component of every issuance.
The approach follows a broader shift toward placing blockchain infrastructure underneath established securities-market interfaces. DTCC has already moved tokenized securities into live post-trade workflows, while Nasdaq’s approved framework keeps tokenized securities connected to its existing market structure. The emerging institutional model increasingly treats tokenization as new market plumbing rather than a replacement for regulated intermediaries.
Distribution Becomes a Key Tokenization Battleground
Fund managers are also experimenting with different ways to expand distribution beyond dedicated issuer portals. WisdomTree, for example, is moving a tokenized money market fund toward MoonPay-powered access, while Centrifuge has connected tokenized funds directly with wallet and fintech interfaces. Prometheum and Federated Hermes are taking a more brokerage-centric route, keeping broker-dealers and advisers between the tokenized product and many end investors.
That distinction matters because blockchain issuance alone does not establish market adoption. The partnership does not disclose committed assets, investor demand, expected flows or secondary-market liquidity for the planned fund. What has been established is a distribution architecture capable of connecting a major asset manager’s future tokenized products with conventional U.S. brokerage channels. Whether that infrastructure attracts meaningful capital will become measurable only after the first fund launches and data emerge on distribution, assets and actual investor usage.