Shipfinex, ADI Chain to tokenize $500M fleet pipeline
Shipfinex and ADI Chain will tokenize about 35 vessels worth roughly $500 million by placing each ship in an SPV and issuing tokens tied to vessel credit or charter income.
Dubai-based Shipfinex has partnered with Abu Dhabi blockchain ADI Chain to tokenize a pipeline of about 35 vessels valued at roughly $500 million. Each ship will be placed in a separate special-purpose vehicle (SPV) and tokens will represent vessel-backed credit, charter-linked income or other defined economic interests in individual ships.
Under the agreement, ADI Chain will provide distribution and settlement infrastructure for the token issuances. Primary allocations and distributions are expected to use stablecoins denominated in UAE dirhams, U.S. dollars and other currencies.
Holding each vessel in a separate SPV allows tokens to be structured to reflect different cash flows or credit interests tied to a single ship. Token structures under consideration include representations of secured lending against vessels and income streams from time charters.
The partnership is currently in a pilot and operational-readiness phase. No Maritime Asset Tokens have been publicly issued and the regulated issuance route remains to be finalized. The partners plan to complete required legal, regulatory and technical work and finish operational tests before offering tokens to outside investors.
The planned tokenization represents a small portion of the global shipping market. Clarksons Research estimated the world fleet and orderbook at about $2.1 trillion at the start of 2026. Data compiled by RWA.xyz showed roughly $38.1 billion in tokenized assets as of Aug. 9, with holdings led by U.S. Treasury debt and commodities. Standard Chartered projected that tokenized real-world assets could reach about $4 trillion by the end of 2028, according to the bank’s global head of digital asset research, Geoff Kendrick.
Shipfinex and ADI Chain say the program aims to offer new financing channels for shipowners by converting parts of vessel economics into tradable digital assets. Operational details, regulatory approvals and the exact token designs will be determined before any public issuance.
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