Bank Negara Malaysia announced SSDS+ on 20 October, bringing tokenised bond and sukuk issuance, custody records and transfers onto infrastructure connected to payments in central-bank money. The platform uses cloud and distributed ledger technology and builds on the existing wholesale securities depository.[1]
The division of responsibilities is central to the design: SSDS+ records securities ownership and transfers; RENTAS+ handles the corresponding payment. BNM says the connection supports settlement around the clock and is ready for tokenised government and corporate retail bonds as well as wholesale issuance.[1]
The cash infrastructure was already operating
RENTAS+ was launched in October 2025. It extended the real-time gross settlement infrastructure to continuous operation and added round-the-clock liquidity facilities using repos and sell-and-buy-back agreements. The October 2026 announcement adds the securities platform to that earlier cash-system upgrade.[2]
Three distinct steps in Malaysia’s market infrastructure
| Milestone | What it established |
|---|---|
| October 2025: RENTAS+ | Continuous central-bank payment infrastructure and supporting liquidity facilities.Source 2 |
| April 2026: Khazanah pilot | Pricing of a RM100 million, one-year tokenised sukuk under a separate pilot.Source 4 |
| October 2026: SSDS+ | Launch of tokenised securities infrastructure linked to RENTAS+.Source 1 |
The earlier RENTAS+ upgrade also changed the processing of DuitNow payments: BNM said PayNet would submit transactions for gross settlement after each customer payment, replacing twice-daily deferred net settlement. That provides an example of the cash infrastructure’s wider role beyond securities.[2]
Issuer adoption and the earlier sukuk pilot
The 20 October notice does not identify a first SSDS+ issuance, participating distributors or live transaction volumes. Readiness to support retail bonds therefore describes capability; it does not establish that every retail investor can already buy a particular tokenised instrument.[1]
The scale of the existing market gives the development significance. In September, BNM put Malaysia’s bond and sukuk market at RM2.35 trillion at the end of June 2026. The same speech had scheduled an SSDS+ soft launch for 25 September and placed it alongside the FAST+ fundraising and tendering programme. The October release is a formal platform announcement, not evidence that the entire wider modernisation programme has finished.[3]
An earlier transaction illustrates the separate task of bringing an instrument to market. In April, the Securities Commission said Khazanah had priced a RM100 million, one-year tokenised sukuk with CIMB and Maybank under a pilot. It used the Wakalah bi al-Istithmar structure within an existing programme of up to RM20 billion. Institutional participants included CGC, KWAP and OCBC.[4]
For securities firms, the operational question is which issuance, custody and settlement steps their own systems and counterparties can process through the connection. Continuous platform availability still requires the relevant cash, securities and operating arrangements. Named issuances and distributor access will show how the new capability is being used.[1][2]
Sources & further reading
- BNM launches SSDS+: powering digital and tokenised bond and sukuk issuance Bank Negara Malaysia · 20 Oct 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- BNM enables round-the-clock interbank settlement with RENTAS+ Bank Negara Malaysia · 7 Oct 2025 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Governor’s remarks at the 30th anniversary of FAST Bank Negara Malaysia · 9 Sep 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Khazanah leads Malaysia’s first tokenised sukuk pilot in collaboration with the SC Securities Commission Malaysia · 28 Apr 2026 · Accessed 29 Oct 2026