FCA-Authorised Marketplaces Integrating Trading and Lending for Real-World Assets

BPX is a UK FCA-authorised marketplace where issuance, secondary trading, custody and collateralised lending for alternative and digital assets, otherwise known as real-world assets, sit inside one regulated venue. We hold FCA authorisation to operate a Multilateral Trading Facility and as an Alternative Investment Fund Manager, and we're registered by the FCA as a cryptoasset firm, so trading and lending run through the same authorised infrastructure rather than across separate, unconnected providers.

Key Takeaways

• BPX is FCA-authorised to operate a Multilateral Trading Facility and as an Alternative Investment Fund Manager, and is registered by the FCA as a cryptoasset firm.
• The FCA defines an MTF as a venue that operates a multilateral system under non-discretionary rules, bringing together multiple buying and selling interests in financial instruments.
• BPX's repo lending service lets institutions pledge investment funds and real-world assets as collateral to access short-term liquidity without a forced sale.
• BPX was approved into Gate 1 of the UK Digital Securities Sandbox, run jointly by the Bank of England and the FCA, as the first hybrid trading venue accepted into that programme.
• Uninvested balances in a BPX investor account wallet sit in a segregated client money account at Barclays Bank UK Plc, protected by the FSCS up to £85,000 per institution.

What does FCA authorisation actually cover on a real-world asset marketplace?

FCA authorisation is not one blanket approval. It covers specific permissions, and a marketplace needs the right combination for trading and lending to actually work together rather than as bolted-together products from different licence holders.

The FCA describes a Multilateral Trading Facility as an investment firm or market operator running a multilateral system under non-discretionary rules, one that brings together multiple third-party buying and selling interests in financial instruments. That's the trading permission. Custody and safekeeping of digital assets require separate permissions again. Fund structuring and management require AIFM authorisation. BPX holds all of these under one roof: we're FCA-authorised to operate a Multilateral Trading Facility, FCA-authorised as an Alternative Investment Fund Manager, and registered by the FCA as a cryptoasset firm. That combination is why we can support the full lifecycle, from a fund's launch and admission through to its trading, lending and custody, without handing pieces of the process to separate, unconnected firms.

Firms operating an MTF also carry capital requirements set by the FCA. For a firm classed as small and non-interconnected that satisfies MIFIDPRU 1.2.1 R, the FCA sets the Permanent Minimum Requirement at £150,000; for an OTF dealing on its own account without limitation, classed as non-small and non-interconnected, that figure rises to £750,000. Capital thresholds like these are one of the reasons FCA authorisation takes real financial commitment to obtain and to keep, and one of the reasons it is worth checking before you commit institutional capital to any venue.

Which real-world assets can trade and settle inside a marketplace like this?

Real-world assets in this context means alternative and digital assets, including investment funds, private credit, infrastructure, real estate and tokenised securities. On BPX, these can exist as digitally native instruments or as "twin" assets bridging traditional and tokenised form, and they move through issuance, secondary trading, custody and repo lending in the same venue.

That range matters because pension funds, insurers and family offices don't hold one type of alternative asset. A private credit position and a tokenised real estate fund unit have different settlement mechanics, different collateral characteristics and different investor bases. BPX Markets exists specifically to bring investment, pension, hedge, mutual and sovereign wealth funds, along with wealth managers, private banks, insurance companies and family offices, into one place where those different asset types can be issued, traded and pledged as collateral without moving between separate systems for each one.

Checklist: what to verify before trusting a marketplace with trading and lending

Before allocating capital or committing a fund's admission to any marketplace, run through the permissions and mechanics that actually determine whether trading and lending work as one connected process or as separate silos with manual handoffs between them.

The SFTR point is worth sitting with. The FCA requires funds engaging in securities financing transactions and total return swaps to disclose that activity in pre-investment documents and regular investor reports, not just to report it to a trade repository. Any repo or lending activity a fund undertakes through a marketplace needs to be reportable and disclosable in this way, so the venue's reporting infrastructure is not a side detail.

Why trading and lending need to sit inside the same regulated venue

Trading and lending run as separate workflows on most platforms, which means collateral has to move, or at least be re-verified, every time it crosses from one system to the other. That adds time, adds counterparty steps and adds points where something can go wrong with a settlement.

On BPX, contractual rights and obligations for repo lending are embedded within composable workflows inside the same marketplace where the underlying asset trades and settles. An institution holding a fund position can pledge that same position as collateral to access short-term liquidity, without triggering a sale or a tax event, and without moving the asset to a different custodian or a different trading system to do it. That's the practical difference between "integrated" and "connected." Static holdings become mobilised collateral because the lending workflow already knows what the asset is, who holds it and what it's worth, since all of that lives in one place.

How BPX brings issuance, trading, custody and lending together

Our goal is straightforward: modernise securities market infrastructure for alternative assets, so that issuers and investors get regulated access and liquidity from one connected venue rather than a chain of separate providers.

We were approved into Gate 1 of the UK Digital Securities Sandbox, a joint Bank of England and FCA programme, as the first hybrid trading venue accepted into it. Practically, that means fund management, digital issuance, admission to secondary and repo markets, custody and client money, and BPX market membership all sit inside one regulated infrastructure. An issuer launching a new fund can structure it with our authorised AIFM service, admit it to trading, and give investors a route to secondary liquidity or repo funding, all without leaving the venue. Investors, in turn, can participate in primary market issues, private credit opportunities and tokenised securities through the same membership.

Our leadership reflects that combination of traditional capital markets and digital market experience: Ali Celiker founded and leads BPX as Founder & CEO, Tony Scawthorn serves as Managing Director, Lord Stanley Fink chairs the business, and Dr Robert Barnes sits on the board as investor and adviser. You can read more about how the venue is structured on our About BPX page.

Frequently asked questions

Is BPX open to retail investors or only institutions?

BPX is built for institutional and professional participants, including pension, hedge, mutual and sovereign wealth funds, wealth managers, private banks, insurers and family offices. The services and products on our site are intended for use by UK residents only and are not aimed at residents of any other jurisdiction.

What do I need to become a BPX member?

Joining BPX markets follows an Onboard, Connect, Transact process. The two documents you'll need are the member agreement and the membership application form, both available through our membership page. Once onboarded, members can access primary issuance, secondary trading and repo lending through the same connection.

Can I use fund holdings as collateral for short-term liquidity on BPX?

Yes. Our repo and collateralised lending service accepts eligible investment funds and real-world assets as collateral, giving institutions access to short-term liquidity without triggering a sale or a tax event. Contractual lending terms sit within the same composable workflow as trading, so pledged assets don't need to move to a separate system.

How are client money and digital assets held on BPX?

Digital assets and client money are held under our custody and client money service. Uninvested balances in an investor account wallet sit in a segregated client money account at Barclays Bank UK Plc, protected by the FSCS up to £85,000 per financial institution. Full detail sits in our risk warning.

If you're weighing up where to structure a fund launch, move existing holdings onto a regulated secondary market, or pledge assets for repo liquidity, send your question or requirement through the enquiry form on this page and our institutional markets team will pick it up directly.