The UK government has selected HSBC’s tokenization platform to support a pilot program for issuing digital government bonds, or “gilts,” representing another move toward modernizing sovereign debt markets through blockchain technology. According to a Thursday statement, HM Treasury appointed HSBC Orion to manage the Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT) pilot issuance.

Back in July 2025, the Treasury released an update on the DIGIT initiative, detailing plans to examine how blockchain could be applied to UK government bond issuance while also encouraging the growth of domestic tokenization capabilities.

“We want to attract investment and make the UK the best place to do business,” said Lucy Rigby, UK Economic Secretary to the Treasury, noting that the pilot is intended to help the country explore the potential of distributed ledger technology, improve efficiency and lower operational costs for businesses.

Structure and goals of the DIGIT program

The DIGIT initiative is designed to issue short-term, digitally native government bonds within the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS). The framework aims to promote broader market access and secondary market activity, with settlement conducted onchain, while remaining separate from the UK’s primary debt management operations.

“This is exactly the kind of financial innovation we need to keep the UK at the forefront of global capital markets and I’m looking forward to working with HSBC and other parties to deliver DIGIT,” Rigby said.

HSBC expands digital bond infrastructure

Since launching in 2023, HSBC Orion has facilitated at least $3.5 billion in digital bond issuance worldwide. This includes the European Investment Bank’s first digital sterling bond and a multi-currency bond issued by the Hong Kong government equivalent to $1.3 billion.

“The UK is a home market for us and the sixth largest economy in the world,” said Patrick George, HSBC’s global head of markets and securities services. “HSBC is delighted to be supporting the continued development of the gilt market, market innovation, and the growth of the broader UK economy,” he added.

In addition to appointing HSBC Orion as the platform provider, the UK government also selected international law firm Ashurst to deliver legal support for the pilot.

“Our team brings deep expertise in digital assets transactions, and we look forward to working with HSBC and supporting the government as it takes this transformative step for UK capital markets,” Ashurst’s head of digital assets, Etay Katz, said.

Sources:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-gilt-instrument-digit-pilot-update/digital-gilt-instrument-digit-pilot-update

https://www.hsbc.com/news-and-views/news/media-releases/2026/hsbc-orion-awarded-digit-platform-mandate

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/update-on-the-procurement-for-digital-gilt-instrument-digit-pilot

https://cointelegraph.com/news/uk-appoint-hsbc-digital-gilt-pilot-digit

https://x.com/LucyRigby/status/2021879321539784838