Europe’s biggest asset manager is pushing deeper into blockchain with an Amundi tokenized fund that aims to bring traditional finance on-chain in a regulated way.
Summary
Amundi and Spiko unveil SAFO with $100 million in assets
Amundi, Europe’s largest asset manager, has launched a new tokenized product called the Spiko Amundi Overnight Swap Fund (SAFO), in partnership with Spiko. The fund debuts with $100 million in committed assets, targeting institutional use cases such as corporate treasury and collateral management.
The vehicle is structured as a tokenized version of a traditional fund and is designed to comply with EU rules, which can strengthen investor confidence. Moreover, Amundi already manages over €2 trillion in assets, so a move of this scale sends a clear signal that large financial institutions are increasingly willing to experiment with blockchain technology.
This launch is positioned as a step beyond pilot projects. Instead of a limited proof of concept, SAFO is being introduced as a live product intended for real-world capital markets activity, which could accelerate adoption among more conservative investors.
How the SAFO tokenized structure works
SAFO focuses on overnight swap strategies, aiming for relatively steady, lower-risk returns that align with short-term liquidity management needs. That said, it remains a market-linked product, so performance still depends on prevailing conditions across interest rate and funding markets.
The fund operates on a dual-chain architecture that integrates both Ethereum and Stellar. Ethereum supports smart contracts and potential decentralized finance integrations, while Stellar is used to enable faster and lower-cost transfers, especially for payment-like flows and cross-border movements.
This dual setup is meant to enable near-24/7 value transfers and to lower operational frictions for institutions. However, it also requires robust cross-chain coordination to maintain a consistent view of fund ownership, settlement, and valuation across both networks.
Multi-currency access and low entry threshold
SAFO supports multiple major currencies, including EUR, USD, GBP, and CHF, which makes it more accessible to a global investor base. Moreover, investors can participate from just one unit, lowering barriers to entry compared with many traditional institutional products that typically require higher minimum allocations.
Because the tokenized setup removes some legacy infrastructure constraints, the fund can offer more flexible access and potentially smoother subscription and redemption processes. That said, actual availability will still depend on local investor rules, platform integrations, and institutional onboarding requirements.
Chainlink’s role in transparency and cross-chain reliability
Chainlink plays a central role in the SAFO design through its Oracle infrastructure. Oracles are systems that connect off-chain data to blockchains. In this case, Chainlink is used to record the fund’s Net Asset Value (NAV) directly on-chain, providing near real-time valuation updates.
By publishing NAV on public networks, the fund’s valuation process becomes more transparent and easier to verify. Anyone with access to the relevant smart contracts can independently check the on-chain NAV data, which can enhance trust in pricing and reporting.
Chainlink also helps coordinate cross-chain data so that both Ethereum and Stellar share a consistent view of key metrics like NAV and other operational parameters. This reduces the risk of discrepancies across the two ledgers and supports smoother interaction between different parts of the infrastructure.
A broader shift toward tokenization of traditional finance
The creation of SAFO is part of a much wider movement in traditional finance toward tokenization, where real-world assets are represented as digital tokens on blockchain networks. This approach promises faster settlement, improved transparency, and potentially lower costs for both issuers and investors.
Tokenized products can, in principle, trade or be transferred 24/7, escaping traditional market hours. Moreover, they can be integrated more easily with programmable finance tools, such as automated collateral management or on-chain liquidity provision, which could reshape the way funds are used in corporate treasury workflows.
Amundi has already tested blockchain-based solutions in previous initiatives, but SAFO marks a progression toward active deployment at scale. Other large firms are exploring similar tokenized mutual fund structures, suggesting that this segment may evolve quickly over the next few years as more regulated products go live.
Implications for investors and market infrastructure
For investors, the Spiko Amundi SAFO offers potential benefits such as more direct access to global fund exposure, faster settlement speeds, and enhanced tracking via on-chain records. However, it also exposes them to the operational and technological risks associated with relatively new blockchain-based systems.
Regulatory frameworks around tokenized securities and funds are still developing in many jurisdictions. That said, a regulated structure backed by a major asset manager may help bridge the gap between existing rules and emerging digital-asset infrastructure, giving institutions a clearer path to adoption.
The amundi tokenized fund initiative highlights how core elements of finance, from valuation to settlement, can progressively move on-chain. For now, SAFO is a single product with $100 million in assets, but it signals how capital markets could gradually evolve as tokenized vehicles become more common.
In summary, the partnership between Amundi, Spiko, and Chainlink demonstrates how established financial institutions are using blockchain, multi-chain design, and Oracle technology to build regulated, transparent, and potentially more efficient fund structures that may reshape asset management over time.
