What is Atomic Settlement?
Atomic settlement is all-or-nothing settlement: every leg of a transaction completes together or none do, with no partial or failed state. For tokenized assets it enables instant delivery-versus-payment — the asset and the payment change hands in one indivisible step, removing the risk that one side settles and the other does not.
Also called: atomic settlement · delivery versus payment · DvP · atomic swap settlement
How atomic settlement works
A single transaction — or, across chains, a bundle coordinated by infrastructure such as Polygon's AggLayer — executes every leg together. If any leg fails, the entire bundle reverts as if nothing happened. That removes the counterparty and settlement risk inherent in traditional T+1/T+2 clearing, where time passes between trade and final settlement.
For tokenized securities this means delivery-versus-payment (DvP) can complete in seconds, 24/7, with no intermediary holding both sides mid-settlement. Cross-chain bundles can be guarded by pessimistic proofs that block a bundle from settling unless its invariants hold.
Frequently asked questions
What is delivery-versus-payment (DvP)?
Delivery-versus-payment is the simultaneous exchange of an asset and its payment so neither party is ever exposed to the other defaulting. Atomic settlement enforces DvP on-chain by making both legs succeed or fail together.
Where this shows up live
On the desk
What our numbers do and do not measure
Every figure on those pages carries its source and as-of time. Nothing is shown when the upstream is unavailable.
Read the desk note
The longer version, written from the desk: The laws and pipes tokenization actually runs on.
Related terms
- AggLayer — AggLayer is Polygon's cross-chain settlement layer.
- Pessimistic Proof — A pessimistic proof is a bridge safety check that assumes every connected chain may be broken.
- Deposit Token — A deposit token is a tokenized claim on a commercial-bank deposit — bank money represented on a blockchain and transferable between the bank's verified clients.
More in Settlement
Informational only · not financial advice. See the live numbers on the data desk, the sourcing rules in the methodology, or the day's stories in the newsroom. · ← All glossary terms