FCA Published Its Final Fund Tokenisation Rules. Here Is What Changes Now.

Shawn Jhanji
May 1
3 min read

British asset managers finally have the clarity they have been waiting for. On 29 April 2026, the Financial Conduct Authority published Policy Statement PS26/7, confirming its final rules and guidance for fund tokenisation in the UK. The document follows the regulator's consultation paper CP25/28, published in October 2025, and marks a significant step forward in the UK's digital securities strategy.

The policy statement does two things of immediate practical consequence. First, it sets out how authorised fund managers can use distributed ledger technology within the FCA's existing regulatory framework, without requiring primary legislation or a new regulatory category. Second, it introduces an optional new Direct to Fund (D2F) dealing model that enables investors to deal directly with a fund, whether that fund is conventional or tokenised, bypassing some of the intermediation that currently slows down fund dealing.

Both measures enter force with immediate effect. The Direct to Fund model is optional, meaning fund managers can choose whether to adopt it, but firms that have been piloting tokenised fund infrastructure now have a defined path to live deployment.

The Blueprint Model

The policy statement formalises what the FCA calls the Blueprint model for tokenised funds. Under this model, fund registers are maintained using DLT, with tokens representing beneficial ownership of fund units. The FCA's guidance explains how compliance requirements under existing authorised fund rules apply to this model, resolving a number of ambiguities that had held back progress since the CP25/28 consultation closed in early 2026.

In practice, this means fund managers operating under COLL (Collective Investment Schemes sourcebook) rules now have a clear reference point for how to implement tokenised registers, manage custody, and handle redemptions. The guidance explicitly addresses the role of depositaries, the position of fund administrators, and how investor protections translate into a tokenised environment.

The Direct to Fund Model

The D2F model is the more structurally interesting element of PS26/7. Traditional authorised fund dealing passes through a network of platforms, distributors, and transfer agents, adding cost and time to every transaction. The D2F model allows investors to transact directly with the fund using tokenised units settled on DLT, reducing the chain of intermediation.

The FCA positions this as optional infrastructure, available to both tokenised and conventional authorised funds. Firms adopting D2F will need to satisfy themselves that their implementation meets the relevant consumer protection and operational resilience rules.

A Roadmap for What Comes Next

Alongside the immediate rules, PS26/7 includes a forward-looking roadmap. The FCA has indicated that it intends to develop further guidance on tokenised portfolio management at retail scale, a model that uses DLT to provide tokenised exposure directly to end investors rather than through conventional fund structures. This is a longer-term horizon but signals the regulator's intent to let the UK authorised fund regime evolve alongside the technology.

For UK startup founders and investors watching the tokenisation space, the FCA's move matters because it demonstrates that the UK's regulatory infrastructure is advancing in parallel with the technology. The policy statement does not resolve every question in fund tokenisation, but it removes the ambiguity that had delayed commercial deployment by asset managers who were waiting for a regulatory green light.

The next question is how quickly UK fund managers act. The guidance is live. The infrastructure is ready. The compliance framework now exists. 2026 may be the year UK fund tokenisation moves from pilot to practice.

Key Takeaways

The FCA published PS26/7 on 29 April 2026, finalising its rules and guidance for fund tokenisation in the UK following the October 2025 consultation.
Fund managers can now use distributed ledger technology within existing authorised fund rules without requiring new legislation.
A new optional Direct to Fund dealing model is available to both tokenised and conventional funds, reducing intermediation in fund transactions.
The Blueprint model for tokenised fund registers is now formally clarified, covering compliance, custody, depositary responsibilities, and investor protections.
The FCA's roadmap signals further work on retail-scale tokenised portfolio management, pointing to a longer-term ambition to evolve the UK's authorised fund regime alongside the technology.