While blockchain technology offers operational assurances and the promise of immutable ledgers, true settlement finality is a legal concept, not a feature of code. Without enforceable legal frameworks, digital asset transactions remain vulnerable to reversal, dispute, and systemic risk.

In this first chapter of our new white paper, "The Case for A CSD for Digital Assets: Chapter One - The Settlement Challenge" we examine the structural challenges in both on-chain and off-chain digital asset settlement models and why a regulated digital CSD is essential to enabling institutional adoption. Through historical parallels and real-world market failures, this paper outlines the lessons that must be learned to ensure the safe, scalable, and efficient evolution of digital asset markets.

Discover how the UK’s Digital Securities Sandbox is unlocking innovation in post-trade settlement and learn how ClearToken is pioneering 24/7 settlement, fractional ownership, and greater efficiency in digital markets.