BlackRock Takes $2.2B Treasury Fund Live on Uniswap in DeFi First

Uniswap announced Wednesday that BlackRock’s tokenized U.S. Treasury fund, BUIDL, is now tradable on Uniswap, marking the world's largest asset manager's first direct use of decentralized finance infrastructure. The integration allows qualified investors to trade the $2.2 billion fund through UniswapX technology, bringing institutional-grade Treasury products to DeFi platforms for the first time at this scale.

The announcement included a strategic investment in the Uniswap ecosystem, with BlackRock purchasing an undisclosed amount of UNI governance tokens. The token surged 35% following the news, reaching $4.11.

What Is BUIDL and Why Does It Matter?

BUIDL, officially called the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund, launched in 2024 as a blockchain-based fund backed entirely by U.S. Treasury bills and cash equivalents. The fund operates on public blockchains and delivers yield on-chain, functioning similarly to a traditional money market fund but with blockchain technology enabling faster settlement and 24/7 access.

According to data from rwa.xyz, BUIDL holds approximately $2.2 billion in total value locked, making it the largest tokenized U.S. Treasury fund currently available. 

The product has already expanded beyond its initial Ethereum base, launching on Binance's BNB Chain and Solana. BlackRock has also integrated BUIDL with DeFi protocols like Euler through wrapped versions of the fund, allowing users to deploy the tokenized Treasuries in various decentralized applications.

How Does the Uniswap Integration Work?

The integration uses UniswapX, an offchain order routing system that aggregates liquidity and settles trades on-chain. Unlike traditional Uniswap automated market maker pools where anyone can provide liquidity, BUIDL trading operates through a request-for-quote framework with strict access controls.

Securitize Markets facilitates all BUIDL transactions on the platform. The company handles the regulatory compliance and whitelisting process that investors must complete before accessing the fund. This arrangement maintains the regulatory standards required for institutional products while using DeFi infrastructure for execution and settlement.

The trading system connects whitelisted investors with approved market makers, currently including:

• Flowdesk
• Tokka Labs
• Wintermute

When an investor wants to trade BUIDL, the automated system identifies the most competitive quote from these subscribers and settles the transaction atomically through smart contracts. "Atomic settlement" means the entire trade either completes in a single blockchain transaction or fails entirely, eliminating counterparty risk during the exchange.

"This collaboration with Uniswap Labs alongside Securitize is a notable step in the convergence of tokenized assets with decentralized finance," said Robert Mitchnick, BlackRock's global head of digital assets. "The integration of BUIDL into UniswapX marks a major leap forward in the interoperability of tokenized USD yield funds with stablecoins."

The integration allows investors to swap BUIDL bilaterally with whitelisted counterparties 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This trading access extends beyond traditional market hours and doesn't require centralized intermediaries to match buyers with sellers.

How Decentralized Exchanges Differ from Traditional Trading

Uniswap is the largest decentralized exchange on Ethereum by cumulative volume. Instead of matching buy and sell orders through a central order book like the New York Stock Exchange, Uniswap relies on smart contracts that automatically execute trades based on predetermined rules.

These smart contracts are self-executing programs stored on public blockchains. Once deployed, they run exactly as programmed without the need for human oversight or centralized control. Users interact with these contracts directly from their cryptocurrency wallets, maintaining custody of their assets throughout the trading process.

For BUIDL specifically, the setup differs from standard Uniswap pools. Rather than using automated market maker formulas, the UniswapX framework sources quotes from professional market makers and executes trades through smart contracts that verify both parties meet the whitelist requirements.

"Our mission at Labs is simple: make exchanging value cheaper, faster and more accessible,” Hayden Adams, Uniswap Labs founder and CEO. “Enabling BUIDL on UniswapX with BlackRock and Securitize supercharges our mission by creating efficient markets, better liquidity, and faster settlement."

Carlos Domingo, CEO of Securitize, emphasized the compliance framework: 

"This is the unlock we've been working toward: bringing the trust and regulatory standards of traditional finance to the speed and openness for which DeFi is known. For the first time, institutions and whitelisted investors can access technology from a leader in the decentralized finance space to trade tokenized real-world assets like BUIDL with self-custody."

The arrangement lets BlackRock maintain the regulatory controls necessary for institutional products while accessing DeFi infrastructure benefits like 24/7 settlement and atomic transactions. Investors keep self-custody of their assets rather than relying on a centralized broker to hold tokens on their behalf.

Conclusion

BlackRock's integration of BUIDL with Uniswap demonstrates how institutional products can operate on DeFi infrastructure while maintaining regulatory compliance. The setup provides qualified investors with 24/7 trading access, atomic settlement, and self-custody options through a whitelisted framework that connects approved market makers with institutional participants. 

The collaboration between BlackRock, Uniswap Labs, and Securitize establishes a working model for bringing tokenized traditional assets to decentralized trading platforms.

Resources

1. Press release by Securitize: Uniswap Labs and Securitize Collaborate to Unlock Liquidity Options for BlackRock’s BUIDL

2. Press release by: BlackRock: BlackRock Launches Its First Tokenized Fund, BUIDL, on the Ethereum Network

3. Report by The Block: BlackRock, Securitize tap DeFi giant Uniswap for direct onchain BUIDL trading; UNI surges 20%