Institutional investors get regulated access to tokenised securities in the UK through BPX, a UK FCA-authorised Multilateral Trading Facility and Alternative Investment Fund Manager. Access runs through BPX market membership, connects to primary and secondary trading, custody, and repo lending, and is supported by standardised API connectivity, a document library, and licensed market data.
Key Takeaways
- BPX is UK 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 Bank of England's dashboard lists BPX Markets Limited as having passed Gate 1 of the Digital Securities Sandbox on 14 January 2025.
- Institutional investors reach new issues, secondary trading, and repo lending through a single BPX membership, rather than separate onboarding for each activity.
- The Financial Conduct Authority reports that 16 firms had already passed the first stage of the Digital Securities Sandbox as of 18 May 2026.
What Counts as a Regulated UK Market for Tokenised Securities?
A regulated UK market for tokenised securities is one operating under FCA permissions built for the asset class, not a platform simply describing itself as compliant. BPX holds UK FCA authorisation to operate a Multilateral Trading Facility, UK FCA authorisation as an Alternative Investment Fund Manager, and FCA registration as a cryptoasset firm.
Those three permissions cover different parts of the same lifecycle. The MTF authorisation is what lets BPX run secondary market execution for institutional participants, with pre-trade and post-trade transparency built into the venue. The AIFM authorisation is what lets BPX structure and manage funds directly, including digitally native money market funds and private credit vehicles, rather than only listing them. The cryptoasset registration covers the digital asset side of that same infrastructure. Together, they mean an institutional investor isn't dealing with three separate counterparties to get from fund structuring through to settlement. It's one regulated framework, covering fund management, securities markets, custody, and lending as a single connected system.
How Do You Become a BPX Member?
You become a BPX member by applying for market membership, which is the gateway to trading, lending, and data access on the platform. Membership brings access to our document library, reference library, and connectivity tools, so institutions can review the rulebook and technical requirements before going live.
The practical steps sit across a few resources rather than one form:
- BPX market membership covers the application itself and the trading permissions attached to it.
- Document library holds the rulebook, member agreements, and technical documentation you'll need to review before connecting.
- Reference library gives you reference data, market notices, and the market closure calendar, including UK bank holidays for 2026.
- API market access provides standardised APIs so your systems can connect directly into BPX markets rather than relying on manual order entry.
- Market data is available in real-time and delayed form, directly from BPX, under a market data licence agreement and order form.
Our markets team operates Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 16:30 UK time, which is the window for institutional membership, trading, and partnership enquiries. Full detail on the application route sits on the membership page, and the BPX markets page ties membership, trading services, and both libraries together in one place.
What Can You Actually Trade Once You're Connected?
Once connected as a member, institutional investors can participate across three linked activities: primary issuance, secondary trading, and repo lending. These aren't separate platforms bolted together. They run through the same regulated venue, so a fund admitted at issuance is also the fund you can trade and pledge as collateral later.
| Market | Regulatory basis | What you access | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary market | Admission through BPX's regulated marketplace | New issues, private credit opportunities, tokenised securities | Entering a fund or asset at issuance, reaching the professional investor universe |
| Secondary market | Regulated Multilateral Trading Facility | Ongoing execution for institutional trading, with pre-trade and post-trade transparency | Buying or selling positions after issuance, with transparent pricing |
| Repo (lending) | Collateralised lending within the same venue | Pledging eligible assets, including investment funds and real-world assets, as collateral | Raising short-term liquidity without triggering a sale or a tax event |
The connection between these three matters more than any one of them individually. An issuer that structures a fund with us can move straight into primary market admission, secondary trading, and repo lending without re-onboarding at each stage. For an institutional investor on the other side, that means a fund position bought on day one can be pledged as collateral later, inside contractual workflows built into the platform, rather than moved to a separate lending desk.
Custody, Client Money and the Path to DVP Settlement
Custody and client money handling sit inside the same regulated framework as trading, not with a separate third party bolted on afterward. BPX provides custody, safekeeping, administration, and client money support across both traditional and tokenised securities, covering the full lifecycle from admission through to settlement.
That matters practically. A fund manager issuing a tokenised private credit vehicle needs to know where units are held, how client money is segregated, and how settlement actually clears, before an institutional investor will commit capital. BPX's traditional and digital markets service spans both traditional securities and tokenised instruments, and we're working toward Digital DVP (delivery versus payment) settlement as part of that infrastructure. Delivery versus payment means the transfer of an asset and the corresponding payment happen as one linked event, so neither side is left holding a settlement risk while waiting on the other.
Where BPX Sits in the UK's Digital Securities Sandbox
BPX Markets was the first hybrid trading venue accepted into the Bank of England and FCA's Digital Securities Sandbox, a live regulatory environment for testing tokenised securities issuance, trading, and settlement. The Bank of England's dashboard confirms BPX Markets Limited passed Gate 1 on 14 January 2025.
It's worth being precise about what that Gate 1 status covers, because sandbox stages are easy to misread. The Bank of England states that a firm approved at Gate 1 does not have permission to undertake any live activity within the sandbox until it clears Gate 2. That restriction applies to the specific novel activities being tested under the sandbox's legal framework, sitting alongside BPX's existing FCA authorisations as a Multilateral Trading Facility and Alternative Investment Fund Manager, which are already live and in use for issuance, trading, and lending today. The Financial Conduct Authority and Bank of England reported jointly on 18 May 2026 that 16 firms had already passed the sandbox's first stage and were working toward going live, which gives some sense of how early most of the market still is on this specific track.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to be an FCA-authorised firm myself to become a BPX member?
BPX membership is built for institutional investors, investment managers, and issuers operating in the professional investor universe, and our services are intended for UK residents. Specific eligibility and documentation requirements are set out during the membership application process, covered in detail on our membership page.
Can retail investors trade on BPX?
BPX's services and products are aimed at the UK professional investor universe and are intended for use by UK residents only. Our primary and secondary market services, along with repo lending, are structured around institutional participation rather than retail access.
What's the difference between primary and secondary market access on BPX?
Primary market access is where you participate in a new issue, private credit opportunity, or newly admitted tokenised security. Secondary market access, run through our regulated Multilateral Trading Facility, is where you trade an already-issued position, with pre-trade and post-trade transparency built into execution.
Does BPX's Digital Securities Sandbox status mean live trading isn't available yet?
No. Our Gate 1 sandbox status relates to specific novel activities tested under the sandbox's legal framework. Our core services, including primary and secondary trading, custody, and repo lending, run under separate, already-live FCA authorisations as a Multilateral Trading Facility and Alternative Investment Fund Manager.
If you're weighing up how membership, trading access, or custody would work for a specific fund or issuance you're planning, send the details through the enquiry form below this article and our institutional markets team will pick it up from there.
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