Lidia Kurt, CEO of Seturion and its Swiss subsidiary BX Digital, is among the most prominent voices in Switzerland’s digital-asset space. The PhD-trained finance specialist from the University of St. Gallen has been working on tokenization and market infrastructure for years.

Her counterpart is Matthias Voelkel, CEO of the Boerse Stuttgart Group and a former McKinsey partner focused on capital market infrastructure. Together, they are advancing a project that deliberately targets a layer often overlooked: not trading, but what comes after it – post-trade.

The Real Problem Lies Beyond Trading

«Europe is highly fragmented», Kurt says. She is not referring to trading itself, but to what follows: settlement, custody, clearing. National systems, differing regulations, and multiple intermediaries create a web that slows transactions and drives up costs.

Voelkel puts it more bluntly: «Settlement in Europe is simply too expensive – especially in cross-border transactions.»

This is where Seturion comes in. The platform is designed as a unified settlement infrastructure across countries. It is based on distributed ledger technology and enables the settlement of tokenized assets across public and private blockchains.

Deliberately not another «Silo«

The approach differs from many existing initiatives. «We could have simply built another exchange for tokenized securities», Kurt says. «That would just have created another silo.»

Instead, Seturion targets the layer beneath: «We address the settlement layer – and offer an open solution for all.»

In practical terms, this means that other exchanges can connect, as can market participants such as banks, brokers, and issuers. The platform is designed as an open architecture.

Nasdaq as a Lever

Against this backdrop, the partnership with Nasdaq becomes clearer. «Why are we partnering with Nasdaq?», Voelkel says, before answering his own question: «Because we have built a pan-European settlement platform with Seturion – a horizontal digital offering. And no other exchange group in Europe has that.»

The core lies in the architecture. «Nasdaq does not want – just like we don’t – to operate a vertical digital silo for each country», Voelkel says.

Scaling through Infrastructure

For Nasdaq, the cooperation is primarily an infrastructural option: its European trading venues can connect to a cross-border settlement layer without having to build their own solutions in each market.

There is also a second lever. Nasdaq is not only an exchange operator but also a technology provider for other trading venues. «Nasdaq operates exchanges and at the same time provides IT systems for exchanges», Voelkel says.

However, Nasdaq is only «the first strategic partner». Further discussions are underway – not only with exchanges, but also with banks, brokers, and issuers. «We don’t want to build dead infrastructure», he says. «What matters is that settlement volume actually flows through the platform.»

Switzerland in Focus

With regard to Switzerland, Voelkel emphasizes that the platform is not an EU-only project. «Our definition of Europe is not the EU – Switzerland is naturally part of it.»

The focus is therefore less on institutional partnerships with existing exchanges and more on direct connections to market participants. «We expect strong interest from banks that are early adopters of new technologies», Kurt adds.

Through BX Digital, the group already operates a FINMA-licensed DLT trading system, which serves as the first «client» of Seturion. For wealth managers and asset managers, this creates an additional option for cross-border settlement.

A Different Philosophy from SIX

The question of competition with SIX and its SDX platform inevitably arises. Kurt stresses that Seturion is conceived as an «open ecosystem» that other exchanges could also join.

Voelkel is more explicit: «We have a different philosophy.» While existing initiatives tend to be vertically integrated – combining trading and settlement within one system – Seturion focuses on a horizontal structure for settlement.

In that sense, the platform positions itself less as a direct competitor and more as an alternative infrastructure layer.

Tokenization as an Infrastructure Theme

The concept behind Seturion is based on the conviction that tokenization is a structural trend. «This is not just a new asset class. It is the next step in the technological evolution of financial markets.»

Accordingly, the focus is not on isolated pilot projects, but on a potential reshaping of market structure. Initial use cases include funds, bonds, and structured products.

Volume as the Key Success Dactor

«We are not building infrastructure on a ‹build it and they will come basis›», Voelkel says. What matters is that the platform is developed together with market participants from the outset.

The partnership with Nasdaq is a first step. «It is a blueprint», Kurt says. «It shows that the concept resonates in the market.»

The race to define the architecture of Europe’s digital capital market is well underway.