Industry First! Moody's Brings Independent Credit Ratings onto Blockchain, What Benefits Does On-Chain Credit Rating Bring to the Industry?

Moody’s, one of the three major credit rating agencies in the United States, has made the first-ever integration of data into the blockchain and launched a token integration engine to enhance transparency and efficiency in digital finance. At the same time, the company released a method for rating stablecoins, focusing on the quality of reserve assets.

Moody’s Launches Token Integration Engine, First to Bring Credit Rating Data on Chain

Moody’s announced the launch of a cross-network Token Integration Engine (TIE), becoming the first rating agency to incorporate analysis data into the blockchain and share credit insights on-chain.

Moody’s also became the first rating agency to operate a node on the Canton Network, a blockchain designed for institutional use, marking a significant step in digital innovation. This enables secure, compliant, and efficient data onboarding and rating publication through technology.

The TIE serves as a foundational layer for integration, utilizing this node to improve transparency and operational efficiency within the digital financial ecosystem. Participation mechanisms will be led by issuers, supporting market consensus while ensuring Moody’s ratings maintain their integrity, control, and core position in the digital capital markets.

Moody’s TIE Strengthens Digital Financial Trust, Reduces Transaction Friction, and Enhances Transparency

As financial markets continue to digitize, the demand for independent and trustworthy risk analysis remains unchanged. Fabian Astic, Head of Moody’s Digital Economy and Managing Director, stated that the firm is extending its rigorous approach to digital market infrastructure, aligning with global regulatory expectations and corporate governance and compliance practices.

Yuval Rooz, co-founder of Canton Network, pointed out that clients now have a new way to access credit insights within digital markets and on-chain financial workflows.

He explained that adopting on-chain independent risk analysis can simplify data distribution to authorized participants, reduce transaction friction, and improve transparency throughout the transaction lifecycle, all while maintaining privacy, control, and compliance, thereby enhancing overall market efficiency.

Image source: Canton official Twitter Moody’s collaborates with Canton Network to launch the token integration engine, pioneering on-chain credit rating data

Canton Network Designed for Financial Institutions, Balancing Privacy and Compliance

Canton Network, developed in partnership with Moody’s, is set to go live in 2024, primarily targeting traditional financial institutions. Its core design balances the decentralization features of public blockchains with the strict privacy and compliance requirements of financial markets.

Using the infrastructure called Global Synchronizer, Canton Network can connect multiple independent blockchains and applications, enabling real-time asset and data synchronization while safeguarding privacy.

In terms of privacy protection, transaction participants only access the data necessary for their operations. For example, in securities settlement and payment synchronization, banks can see only payment information without revealing details of securities delivery.

This mechanism, which balances security and efficiency, has already attracted major financial institutions such as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan to adopt it.

Related reports:
JPMorgan’s JPM Coin to launch on Canton! Complete issuance and redemption by year-end for real-time settlement

The Final Showdown: How Canton, the institutional blockchain, gained favor from the London Stock Exchange and BNY Mellon executives?

Moody’s Releases Final Method for Stablecoin Ratings, Reserve Asset Quality Is Key

On the same day, Moody’s also published the final version of its stablecoin rating methodology. The new framework emphasizes assessing the credit quality of the reserve assets backing stablecoins, considering market value risk, liquidity, operational resilience, and technical risks.

Moody’s stablecoin rating framework is based on a proposal from December 2025, which highlights transparency and composition of reserves as critical factors for reliability. It also requires issuers to keep stablecoin operations effectively segregated from other activities, ensuring reserve assets are solely used to fulfill redemption obligations.

Within this framework, even if two stablecoins claim to maintain a 1:1 peg with the US dollar, their credit ratings may differ depending on the composition and quality of their backing reserves.

The move to put credit rating data on-chain and the release of the final stablecoin rating methodology demonstrate that traditional rating agencies are beginning to align with blockchain technology amid the trend of tokenization and stablecoin payment applications. This could significantly lower the trust barrier for traditional institutional investors entering on-chain markets, enabling them to trade and allocate assets securely on the blockchain.

Further reading:
Nasdaq CEO: Blockchain will reshape the financial system in three ways! Capital efficiency and payment speeds will double