Credit Agricole’s Asset Servicing Unit Backs Tokenized SME Exchange in Europe

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By Ian Allison, AI Boost|Edited by Parikshit Mishra

Aug 4, 2025, 8:06 a.m.

Lise will target SMEs and mid-cap firms with blockchain-based trading infrastructure
Platform’s launch awaits DLT Trading and Settlement System approval under EU pilot regime

CACEIS, the asset servicing arm of Credit Agricole, has acquired a minority stake in French fintech Kriptown to support the launch of Lise, a blockchain-based exchange aimed at SMEs and mid-cap companies.

Lise, short for Lightning Stock Exchange, is set to be Europe’s first tokenized exchange focused on streamlining equity financing and public listings for smaller firms, CACEIS said in a press release on Monday.

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Lise is currently awaiting regulatory approval as a DLT Trading and Settlement System (DLT TSS) under the European pilot regime. If approved, it would allow companies to issue, trade, and settle financial instruments directly on a distributed ledger, cutting down the time and costs associated with traditional IPO processes.

Lise would allow investors to trade shares on a secondary market that operates around the clock, without the bottlenecks of standard clearing houses, or lengthy coordination of multiple intermediaries.

The move aligns with CACEIS’s broader push into digital assets, which saw it receive MiCA approval earlier this year.

Founded in 2018, Kriptown develops infrastructure for tokenizing financial instruments, integrating both market and post-trade operations. Lise’s first IPO is planned for 2025, contingent on receiving the necessary approvals.

Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk’s full AI Policy.

Ian Allison is a senior reporter at CoinDesk, focused on institutional and enterprise adoption of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. Prior to that, he covered fintech for the International Business Times in London and Newsweek online. He won the State Street Data and Innovation journalist of the year award in 2017, and was runner up the following year. He also earned CoinDesk an honourable mention in the 2020 SABEW Best in Business awards. His November 2022 FTX scoop, which brought down the exchange and its boss Sam Bankman-Fried, won a Polk award, Loeb award and New York Press Club award. Ian graduated from the University of Edinburgh. He holds ETH.

“AI Boost” indicates a generative text tool, typically an AI chatbot, contributed to the article. In each and every case, the article was edited, fact-checked and published by a human. Read more about CoinDesk’s AI Policy.