ERC-7540

ERC-7540

ERC-7540 is an Ethereum token standard that extends the tokenized vault interface (ERC-4626) to support asynchronous deposits and redemptions. Where ERC-4626 assumes a deposit or withdrawal settles instantly, ERC-7540 introduces a request-then-fulfill pattern: a user submits a deposit or redemption request, and the vault processes it at a later valuation and settlement point.

This exists because instant settlement is impossible for vaults backed by illiquid assets. A vault holding private credit can't compute an exact NAV every second, and can't honor an instant redemption when its capital is deployed in loans that return cash on their own schedules. Forcing such a vault through a synchronous interface would mean either misreporting its value or promising liquidity it can't deliver. ERC-7540 makes the async reality explicit and standardized: the vault commits to processing requests on a real timeline tied to its actual assets.

The standardization is the point. Rather than every RWA protocol inventing its own request mechanism, ERC-7540 gives wallets, dashboards, and integrating protocols a common interface for async vaults, the same role ERC-4626 plays for synchronous ones, which is what keeps institutional-grade RWA vaults composable rather than bespoke.

Related: Async deposits and ERC-7540 and ERC-4626.