DBS offers tokenized physical gold to retail customers in Singapore

DBS Group, the largest bank in Southeast Asia, is bringing tokenized physical gold to the masses. Starting in the second half of 2026, retail customers in Singapore will be able to buy, sell, and hold gold tokens through the bank’s digibank app, with each token backed by one gram of physical gold stored in a vault in Singapore.

The product, called DBS Physical Gold Tokens, represents Singapore’s first retail offering of tokenized physical gold. At approximately S$200 per gram at the time of the announcement, the entry point is deliberately low enough to pull in investors who previously found gold ownership either too expensive or too cumbersome to bother with.

What the tokens actually do

The tokens are designed to be invested, traded, and held on a single platform, the digibank app. That’s a meaningful distinction from existing gold investment products that often require multiple intermediaries or separate custody arrangements.

DBS is also considering listing the tokens on its DBS Digital Exchange, known as DDEx, for accredited and institutional investors. That would create a two-tier market: retail access through the app, institutional access through the exchange.

From wealth clients to everyone else

DBS has offered physical gold investments to its wealth clients since 2013. The tokenization play changes the economics entirely. When you can slice a gold bar into gram-sized digital tokens, the minimum investment drops to S$200 per gram, roughly $150 USD.

James Tan, DBS group head of investment product and advisory, highlighted the importance of tokenization in making gold investment access safer and more meaningful for retail customers.

DBS’s initiative aligns with similar efforts by other financial institutions, notably OCBC’s recent launch of the GOLDX fund in April 2026, which also emphasizes the tokenization of physical commodities on public blockchains.

The launch also coincides with Singapore’s ambitions of becoming a regional gold trading hub in response to increasing global demand for gold.

Why this matters beyond Singapore

The risk side is worth noting. Tokenized gold is still gold, which means it carries gold’s price risk. And while DBS’s custodial track record is strong, the operational risks of a new token platform, including smart contract vulnerabilities, liquidity constraints at launch, and regulatory shifts, are worth watching.

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