Nomura's Laser Digital Backs UAE-Based ZIGChain for Onchain Private Credit

UAE-based Layer 1 blockchain ZIGChain has secured a strategic investment from Laser Digital, the digital assets subsidiary of Japan’s Nomura Group, as the two companies partner to bring institutional-grade private credit and other regulated financial products onchain.

Beyond the investment, the partnership underscores the UAE’s growing role as a hub for institutional blockchain infrastructure, bringing together ZIGChain’s regional asset origination capabilities with Laser Digital’s expertise in institutional risk management, governance, and digital asset investing.

Under the agreement, Laser Digital will provide product structuring, governance, and risk framework design for a pipeline of investment products developed through ZIG Markets—the product and access layer within the ZIGChain ecosystem. The partners are targeting a minimum of $100 million in total value locked (TVL) across the platform’s initial offerings.

Moving Beyond Tokenized Treasuries

While tokenized U.S. Treasuries and money market funds have dominated the real-world asset (RWA) market, private credit has emerged as one of the fastest-growing segments as institutions look beyond low-risk yield products.

Yet despite growing investor interest, institutional-grade private credit originating from emerging markets has remained relatively limited.

The partnership seeks to address that gap by combining ZIG Markets’ regional origination network with Laser Digital’s institutional governance standards, enabling private credit opportunities to be structured and distributed onchain under established risk management frameworks.

Beyond private credit, the companies said they plan to develop additional blockchain-based financial products spanning PayFi, SME financing, invoice factoring, and stablecoin-enabled financial services.

Governance Takes Center Stage

Unlike many tokenization initiatives that focus primarily on bringing assets onto blockchain networks, the collaboration places governance and institutional oversight at the center of the offering.

Laser Digital will oversee product structuring, governance, and risk management across ZIG Markets’ investment products, while ZIGChain will provide the blockchain infrastructure designed for compliant investment issuance and distribution.

The companies said the approach is intended to make onchain investment products more accessible to banks, family offices, institutional allocators, and professional investors that require robust governance before deploying capital.

The first products developed under the partnership are expected to launch in the coming months.

UAE Strengthens Its Position in Institutional Blockchain

The partnership also reinforces the UAE’s growing position as a destination for regulated digital asset infrastructure.

ZIGChain is a UAE-based Layer 1 blockchain purpose-built for compliant investment products, while Laser Digital operates under regulatory oversight from both Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM).

The collaboration reflects a broader trend of global financial institutions leveraging the UAE’s regulatory environment to develop blockchain-based financial services for regional and international markets.

It also expands ZIGChain’s institutional ecosystem, which includes collaborations with Standard Chartered, Apex Group, Taurus, Beehive, and the ADI Foundation as the network continues to position itself as infrastructure for regulated onchain finance.

Connecting Regional Assets With Global Capital

As tokenized real-world assets evolve beyond government securities and money market funds, infrastructure providers are increasingly competing on governance, compliance, and institutional connectivity rather than blockchain performance alone.

For ZIGChain, the partnership represents more than a strategic investment. It demonstrates how UAE-based blockchain infrastructure is beginning to connect regional asset origination with global institutional capital, particularly as demand grows for regulated onchain investment products.

For Laser Digital, the collaboration expands its institutional digital asset strategy into one of the fastest-growing areas of tokenization, while reinforcing the view that the next phase of blockchain adoption will be driven as much by financial infrastructure and governance as by the technology itself.