Archax tokenizes Canary HBAR ETF on Hedera and completes first after-hours transaction

Archax has tokenized the Canary HBAR exchange-traded fund on Hedera and completed the ETF's first after-hours transaction on the blockchain.

In a statement shared with The Block on Friday, the UK and EU-regulated digital asset platform said it executed the transaction on Nov. 27, while traditional U.S. markets were closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Archax said the trade showcases the potential for regulated digital assets, such as tokenized equities, to transact outside traditional market hours and operate onchain continuously, 24/7.

Expanding ETF functionality onchain

Archax said the tokenized ETF is both issued and settled on Hedera's institutional-grade public network, underscoring how traditional financial instruments can move onchain with regulatory oversight. 

"This initiative showcases how regulated financial products can exist and transact onchain while maintaining the compliance and oversight expected by institutions," Graham Rodford, CEO and co-founder of Archax, said.

Gregg Bell, Chief Business Officer at HBAR, Inc., a subsidiary of the Hedera Foundation, said the event represents new functionality for ETFs. "Executing transactions of a tokenized ETF on Hedera, including outside of standard market hours, demonstrates the real-world benefits of distributed ledger technology for modern finance," he added.

Canary's HBAR ETF (ticker: HBR) debuted on the Nasdaq on Oct. 28 and has generated cumulative net inflows of $82 million since, according to SoSoValue data.