Centrifuge Signs $807B Asset Giant New York Life for First Tokenized Bond Product

The company announced a partnership with New York Life Investment Management, which oversees roughly $807 billion in assets, to launch a tokenized version of its U.S. High Yield Corporate Bond Strategy. The product carries the ticker HYB and marks New York Life Investment Management’s first tokenized offering.

The fund will run on Centrifuge’s institutional infrastructure. Subscriptions and redemptions settle in USDC, while the underlying portfolio, investment process, and risk management stay with New York Life Investment Management.

Why This Deal Stands Out

Large asset managers have moved slowly into tokenization. Many have watched the space from the sidelines while smaller funds and DeFi-native firms tested the model first.

New York Life Investment Management’s entry changes that pattern. The firm manages money for New York Life’s general account, institutional clients, and retail investors through financial advisors. Bringing a high-yield credit strategy onchain gives those same investor types a new way to access the fund.

“Tokenization represents a compelling evolution in how investment solutions can be accessed, managed and distributed across both public and private markets,” said Thomas Sy, Head of Multi-Asset Solutions at New York Life Investment Management.

Anil Sood, Chief Strategy Officer and co-founder of Centrifuge Labs, said the fund fills a gap for onchain investors that existing products do not address. He framed the deal as part of a broader shift toward infrastructure that is more transparent and easier to move across markets.

What Tokenization Changes

Tokenizing a bond fund does not change what the fund invests in. It changes how investors get in and out.

Centrifuge’s platform handles issuance, settlement, and investor access onchain. That structure can cut down on the paperwork and delays that come with traditional fund subscriptions, while giving global investors access to a fund that previously moved through narrower distribution channels.

A Broader Pattern

New York Life Investment Management now joins a growing list of asset managers experimenting with tokenized products. Centrifuge has built relationships with firms across credit and asset management, and counts institutions like Apollo and Janus Henderson among its partners.

Industry analysts expect tokenization to expand over the next decade as institutions look for ways to cut operational costs and broaden distribution. Centrifuge and New York Life Investment Management are positioning HYB as an early example of that shift inside fixed income.

For now, the fund gives eligible investors a direct line to an established high-yield strategy, built on infrastructure designed to operate outside traditional fund administration systems.