Janus Henderson, the asset manager, and Centrifuge, a firm focused on bringing real-world assets onto blockchains, have launched a tokenized fund that gives exposure to the Nasdaq-100 index. The product runs on the Stellar network and is open to eligible investors based outside the United States, according to wire reports reviewed by FXMARE.
Coverage of the launch describes the vehicle as a licensed fund and describes it as the first of its kind to bring the Nasdaq-100 onchain in this form. The sources characterize it as an issuer-sponsored product, meaning the fund is created and run by the asset manager itself rather than assembled by an outside party.
That structure is the main point of contrast drawn in the reporting. Tokenized versions of equities have often been issued by third parties that wrap or mirror shares of listed companies. In this case, the manager behind the underlying investment strategy is also the sponsor of the blockchain-based instrument, which is a different route from those third-party stock tokens.
Janus Henderson is described in the coverage as an asset manager overseeing roughly $500 billion. Reports present the Stellar fund as part of a wider push by the firm to build out its institutional tokenization business, in which traditional investment products are issued or represented as digital tokens on a distributed ledger.
The Nasdaq-100 is a widely followed equity benchmark that tracks a group of large non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq exchange. Offering access to it through a token gives eligible investors a way to hold that exposure on a blockchain network, though the sources do not provide details on fees, minimum investment sizes, redemption terms or launch-day assets under management.
The supplied reporting also does not describe any immediate market reaction, such as moves in the price of Stellar's native token or in the index itself, so none is reported here.
Why it matters for traders
The launch shows a large traditional asset manager issuing a licensed equity-index product directly on a public blockchain, rather than leaving tokenization to third parties. Traders following crypto and tokenized assets may watch how issuer-sponsored products compare with third-party stock tokens as institutions expand their onchain offerings.