Europe’s largest asset manager has quietly taken a decisive step into onchain finance, launching a $100 million tokenized cash fund designed to move at blockchain speed while behaving like a traditional safe haven.
Amundi Enters Tokenized RWA Race With $100M SAFO Fund Launch
This week, Amundi introduced the Spiko Amundi Overnight Swap Fund (SAFO), a tokenized sub-fund built for institutional treasury and collateral management, marking one of the firm’s most deliberate pushes into blockchain-based finance to date.
The fund debuts with roughly €100 million (about $100 million) in committed assets and is structured under the French-regulated SPIKO SICAV framework, offering a familiar legal wrapper for professional investors while layering in blockchain functionality.
SAFO is designed to function as a cash-equivalent product, providing overnight liquidity and yields that aim to exceed risk-free benchmarks through fully collateralized total return swaps with major banking counterparties.
Unlike traditional money market funds, the shareholder register exists natively onchain across Ethereum and Stellar, enabling continuous, 24/7 transferability of fund shares without the typical constraints of market hours or settlement delays.
That dual-chain setup is intentional: Ethereum handles smart contract functionality and compatibility with decentralized finance (DeFi), while Stellar provides faster and lower-cost transaction rails, giving institutional users flexibility depending on their operational needs.
Infrastructure for pricing and cross-chain coordination is powered by Chainlink, which supplies automated onchain net asset value reporting and helps synchronize data between networks—an increasingly critical component as tokenized funds expand across multiple blockchains.
The launch builds on Amundi’s earlier experiment with tokenized share classes in November 2025, but SAFO represents a more ambitious iteration—a purpose-built, multi-chain fund engineered for programmability and real-time settlement rather than a simple digital wrapper of an existing product.
Operationally, subscriptions and redemptions are available in major currencies, including the euro, U.S. dollar, British pound and Swiss franc, with entry thresholds as low as one unit, a nod to accessibility even within a product aimed at institutional participants.
The broader pitch is straightforward: eliminate friction. Investors gain near-instant settlement, real-time visibility into ownership, and the ability to transfer shares globally at any hour—features that traditional fund infrastructure, with its reliance on cut-off times and batch processing, has long struggled to match.
Jean-Jacques Barbéris, head of institutional and corporate clients and ESG at Amundi, framed the move as part of a larger strategic direction. “SAFO provides professional investors with a fast and transparent access to cash management solutions. This initiative is part of our ambition to contribute to the rise of tokenized solutions,” he said.
Behind the scenes, the structure relies on a familiar cast of financial plumbing. Spiko acts as transfer agent and tokenization platform, while CACEIS serves as depositary and administrator, ensuring the fund remains anchored in traditional financial safeguards even as its rails shift onchain.
The timing is hardly accidental. Tokenized real-world assets ( RWAs), particularly money market and treasury-linked products, have gained traction across 2025 and into 2026, with institutions increasingly experimenting with blockchain rails that promise efficiency without discarding regulatory compliance.
SAFO slots neatly into that narrative, offering a bridge between legacy finance and programmable assets—something that could eventually extend beyond treasury management into collateral use cases or integration with DeFi protocols.
Of course, the model is not without its caveats. Smart contract risks, evolving custody standards and jurisdictional nuances remain part of the equation, though the fund’s regulated European structure and reliance on established financial partners aim to soften those edges.
Still, the direction is clear: tokenization is no longer a pilot project. With a $100 million opening act and infrastructure designed for scale, Amundi is signaling that the next iteration of cash management may look less like a bank ledger and more like a blockchain transaction—settled before most desks have finished their morning coffee.
FAQ 🔎
- What is the Amundi SAFO fund?
A tokenized cash-equivalent fund offering overnight liquidity and blockchain-based settlement for institutional investors. - Which blockchains support the SAFO fund?
The fund operates on Ethereum for smart contracts and Stellar for fast, low-cost transactions. - How does Chainlink support the fund?
Chainlink provides automated onchain NAV reporting and cross-chain data synchronization. - Who can invest in the SAFO fund?
It is designed for professional and institutional investors accessing it through Spiko’s platform.