The Swiss lender says this is the first ever digital bond by a banking institution globally that will be listed, traded and settled on a regulated digital exchange - SIX Digital Exchange (SDX).

The bond settles via SDX distributed ledger-based central securities depository network through atomic settlement technology. Settlement is instant and automatic and does not require a central clearing counterparty, says UBS.

The bond will also be listed and traded on the traditional SIX Swiss Exchange.

Beatriz Martin, UBS group treasurer, says: "We are proud to leverage distributed ledger technology to launch the inaugural UBS digital bond. This shows our commitment to support the development of new financial market infrastructure."