Baillie Gifford announced on 22 June 2026 the creation of the Baillie Gifford Enhanced Yield Fund (BAGEY), marking the United Kingdom’s inaugural fully native tokenised fund.
Fund Launch
Founded over a century ago, Baillie Gifford manages assets for a worldwide client base. By issuing BAGEY directly on public blockchains, the firm joins peers such as BlackRock, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, all of which have experimented with tokenised fund frameworks.
Native Tokenisation
The Enhanced Yield Fund operates natively on both Ethereum and Solana, avoiding the practice of wrapping an existing share class. The blockchain functions as the legal register of record, meaning each token represents an investor’s actual stake in the fund rather than a derivative claim.
Ownership records reside on the blockchain, establishing it as the definitive source of legal truth. This architecture eliminates the need for a separate custodial layer and aligns the fund’s structure with the immutable nature of crypto technology.
Investor Impact
Investors receive tokens that convey direct entitlement to the fund’s assets, streamlining access and settlement. The on‑chain approach promises greater transparency for market participants while preserving the fund’s regulatory compliance.
“Tokenisation will only matter if it makes finance fundamentally better. A digital wrapper around yesterday’s infrastructure is not enough,” said Theo Golden, Head of Digital Assets at Baillie Gifford, on the day of the launch. His comment underscores the firm’s ambition to leverage blockchain for genuine financial innovation.