Chatsworth and our clients were all ears. This one matters.
Rigby’s message was clear, confident and ambitious: the digitalisation of markets is happening, and Britain will lead it. From wholesale market infrastructure to the rise of tokenised assets, this is a decisive moment of alignment between policy, regulation, and industry innovation.
Some interesting details this time around, as well as some call-outs to the leaders and industry participants who will be tasked to deliver this work.
Digitalisation as a growth strategy
Financial services remain “the engine that keeps us all going,” but that engine must now run on digital rails with financial market modernisation not as a niche technical reform but as a pillar of national industrial strategy.
The government’s Wholesale Financial Market Digital Strategy, published in July, provides the roadmap. It commits to removing outdated paper processes, digitising back-office operations, and creating the regulatory space for tokenised financial assets, backed by the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS) and the forthcoming Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT) pilot, the UK’s first sovereign debt tokenisation project.
For years, the industry has called for the government to move from consultation to execution. That moment has arrived.
There was clear recognition of the UK’s readiness to host tokenised securities and next-generation settlement systems. The DIGIT (Digital Gilt Instrument) project — a landmark initiative that will see Her Majesty’s Treasury issue tokenised government debt on a distributed ledger.
This will be a cornerstone of the UK’s digital market infrastructure, and it needs to be resilient, future-proof, and built with an understanding of sovereign bond issuance and post-trade settlement, with connectivity from the UK to the rest of the world.
A tokenisation champion for the UK and the beginning of the end of paper shares
Possibly the biggest “new news” is that the UK will appoint a ‘Digital Markets Champion’ to lead blockchain-based finance reform
The goal here is to unify and guide private-sector initiatives focused on the tokenisation of traditional financial assets such as stocks, bonds, and other securities.
HMT will also form a Dematerialisation Market Action Taskforce, which will oversee the country’s transition away from paper share certificates. The minister announced that this taskforce will be led by Mark Austin, following the recommendations of the Flint digitisation review.
Accelerated settlement: A complementary transformation
The minister also highlighted the workstream to move UK markets to T+1 settlement by October 2027.
The government’s Accelerated Settlement Taskforce, chaired by Andrew Douglas, is she commented, “doing a fantastic job” in driving this effort.
We agree. The consultative, industry-engaged approach Andrew Douglas has taken, backed by partner Euroclear, is best-in-class and the right way to get this complex work over the line.
Chatsworth is proud to be the communications partner to Andrew and the taskforce helping communicate its progress and industry engagement.
T+1 is not just a technical change. It’s a systemic efficiency upgrade that reduces risk, frees up liquidity, and aligns the UK with other major global markets. Crucially, it also creates a foundation for real-time, digital settlement, paving the way for tokenised transactions.
By connecting these two initiatives, T+1 and digital asset markets, the government is, for the first time, articulating a joined-up vision of the future financial plumbing of the UK.
A balanced, pro-innovation regulatory vision
From the Digital Securities Sandbox to the proposed stablecoin and crypto asset regulatory regimes, the government is taking a measured approach. Rather than over-correcting toward restriction or rushing to liberalise, Rigby’s Treasury is creating a controlled environment for innovation to thrive safely.
There was a clear sense of balance: “We’re prioritising a framework that enables innovation while maintaining trust,” she said. A line that could easily serve as the mission statement for the UK’s entire fintech sector.
This mirrors the sentiment we hear daily from institutional clients: markets crave clarity, not chaos. A clear regulatory trajectory, particularly for stablecoins, tokenised deposits, and on-ledger settlement, will unlock private investment and drive confidence.
Crypto asset ETNs will be made accessible to retail investors through regulated channels, marking another step towards responsibly mainstreaming digital finance.
Collaboration, communication and confidence
This was a speech to industry leaders, technologists, and investors, positioning government as a partner, not a referee.
The DIGIT project, the Digital Securities Sandbox, the T+1 transformation, and the Transatlantic Task Force together represent not isolated initiatives but a coherent ecosystem, where technology, regulation and market leadership converge.
The government’s vision is ambitious, but achievable. The market’s appetite is strong, but it needs reassurance. The public narrative is shifting, and with it, the opportunity for the UK to reaffirm its role as the trusted global centre of digital finance.
The UK’s long tradition of financial innovation, from the creation of building societies and insurance mutuals to electronic trading, should give us confidence in our future.
The challenge now is to maintain momentum — to communicate with clarity, engage stakeholders openly, and demonstrate progress visibly.
The question is not whether digitalisation will happen, only how fast, and whether Britain will lead. The UK doesn’t need to reinvent its financial DNA; it needs to translate it into the digital era.
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