Financial powerhouse HSBC (HSBA) is tokenizing gold for everyday investors in Hong Kong and claiming bragging rights as the first bank to create a blockchain-based real-world asset aimed at the retail marketplace. The HSBC Gold Token, minted on the bank’s Orion digital assets platform, is available via HSBC Online Banking and HSBC HK Mobile App, the bank said in a press release on Wednesday. Banks and financial institutions are bringing a range of real-world assets (RWA) onto blockchains, both private ledgers and public networks like Ethereum, in a process known as tokenization.

HSBC's building in Hong Kong. (Christian Mueller/Shutterstock)

Galaxy Digital (GLXY), the crypto financial services firm headed by Michael Novogratz, had a strong end to 2023 with solid operating results across its diversified business, broker Canaccord Genuity said in a research report on Wednesday. Canaccord notes that while the fourth quarter was solid, commentary about the performance of the Toronto-listed business through the end of February was even better. Positive highlights include an almost doubling of assets under management (AUM) from year-end to more than $10 billion, equity capital growing to over $2.1 billion versus about $1.5 billion at the end of the third quarter, and quarter-to-date income before tax of around $300 million, the report said.

El Salvador, the nation that made bitcoin legal tender in 2021, continues to increase its bitcoin (BTC) holdings. The country’s president, Nayib Bukele, said on Monday that the nation now owns 5,700 bitcoin versus mid-March's roughly 5,690. At bitcoin's current price just above $70,000, El Salvador's bitcoin stack is worth more than $400 million. Bukele earlier this month said the country's bitcoin holdings had been moved to cold storage and published the address of its bitcoin wallet. That wallet showed just under 5,690 BTC, significantly more than the amount public trackers of El Salvador's holdings had estimated.

Layer-1 blockchain Peaq said it raised $15 million in funding to expand its ecosystem of decentralized physical infrastructure (DePIN) networks.

The funding round, led by Generative Ventures and Bordless Capital and featuring participation from Spartan Group, CMCC Global and Animoca Brands, comes ahead of the blockchain's mainnet launch and listing of the PEAQ token.

DePIN refers to using blockchain technology and token incentives to build physical infrastructure networks so other projects don't need to buy and run their own equipment.