Cardano activates CIP-0113 standard for regulated assets on mainnet

What happened

The Cardano Foundation said CIP-0113 is now operational on Cardano's production network. The announcement came on October 7, 2026. The specification gives issuers of stablecoins, funds and bonds a way to build compliance rules into native tokens.

Under the standard, identity checks, sanctions screening and transfer controls sit inside token logic. Cardano's consensus layer validates those embedded policies before a transaction is final. The Foundation said the deployment did not need a hard fork and used functionality already present in the protocol.

Issuers can select existing rule sets, write their own, and update them as regulations change. Depending on the chosen rules, controls can cover identity and sanctions screening, recipient restrictions, freezing, seizure and issuer-controlled transfers.

Cardano Foundation chief executive Frederik Gregaard said the rules have to travel with the asset and be enforced every time it moves.

Why it matters

Regulated issuers carry legal duties that ordinary tokens do not support. Traditional tokens allow unrestricted peer-to-peer transfers, while financial institutions must verify identities and enforce sanctions compliance. CIP-0113 moves those checks into the token architecture itself.

The design also gives issuers powers that can limit holder autonomy. Depending on the rules, an authorized party could freeze or seize tokens, or move them without the holder's consent.

Cardano joins other networks that already offer issuer controls. Ethereum has permissioned token standards such as ERC-3643, Solana provides transfer controls through token extensions, and the XRP Ledger lets issuers restrict holders and claw back balances.

The Capital Markets and Technology Association, a Swiss financial standards body, acknowledged CIP-0113 tokens. It said the assets meet criteria equivalent to its guidelines for issuing tokenized equity instruments in Switzerland.

What the data shows

Work on the specification began in 2023. The Cardano Improvement Proposals repository approved it on September 29, 2026, and it became operational on mainnet about one week later, during the TOKEN2049 industry event.

Eternl, GeroWallet, CardanoScan and BloxBean are among the tools that support the standard. The Foundation said CIP-0113 went live after independent security audits.

Background

Issuer controls are not unique to Cardano. Ethereum's ERC-3643 is a permissioned token standard, Solana's token extensions add transfer controls, and the XRP Ledger supports issuer restrictions and balance clawbacks. The launch establishes that CIP-0113 is now available on Cardano for regulated stablecoins, funds and bonds.

What is still unclear

• The supporting tools give issuers and users a starting point, but they do not show how widely CIP-0113 tokens will be issued or accepted.
• Compliance rules give issuers powers over holders, so a token's transferability cannot be judged apart from the powers its issuer keeps.

Questions readers ask