March 24 (Reuters) - Bank of Montreal ( NRGD ) said on

Tuesday it plans to roll out tokenized cash capabilities in

collaboration with CME Group ( CME ) and Google Cloud, as it

seeks to meet rising demand for real-time payments amid a global

shift toward around-the-clock trading.

Tokenized cash enables near-instant settlement, reducing

delays, freeing up capital faster, and supporting more

efficient, continuous financial market activity.

The initiative will allow the bank's clients to convert U.S.

dollars into a tokenized instrument for use in margined

products, derivatives where traders put up collateral to cover

potential losses, at the CME Group ( CME ) exchange.

BMO said the move is aimed at supporting clients that

increasingly require round-the-clock infrastructure to meet

margin calls and manage trading and settlement activity as

global markets shift toward 24/7 operations.

"As the global ecosystem for stablecoins and tokenized

deposits continues to expand rapidly, this capability marks

significant progress of BMO's ambition to bring regulated money

movement into a modern, programmable environment," said Derek

Vernon, head of BMO's North American Treasury and Payment

Solutions.

"Clients will be able to move funds continuously when

markets demand it, not when banking hours allow it - reducing

funding gaps and operational friction."

BMO's tokenized cash, as an institutional settlement

instrument for regulated financial firms operating in capital

markets and commercial banking, is expected to be launched in

the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approval.

The lender, which is also launching tokenized deposits, said

the capability will allow clients to use the money in the bank

in digital form for payments, treasury movements and

programmable cash applications.