# Asset Designer
Source: https://docs.settlemint.com/docs/operators/asset-creation/create-asset
Use the DALP Asset Designer wizard to choose an instrument template, configure compliance controls, set initial roles, and deploy a tokenized asset.
The DALP Asset Designer is the console workflow for creating a tokenized asset. The wizard starts from a published instrument template, then collects asset basics, template fields, compliance controls, initial roles, and wallet verification.
This guide is for operators using the web interface. If you need to automate the same workflow, use the [API guide for asset creation](/docs/developers/asset-creation/create-asset).
The Asset Designer wizard guides you through selecting an asset class, choosing a published instrument template, configuring any template fields, and applying a compliance policy template.
Common use cases: bond issuance, equity tokenization, fund launch, stablecoin creation, deposit certificates, precious-metal tokenization, real-estate fractionalization. Pick the matching entry from the [system templates catalog](/docs/operators/asset-creation/system-templates). The wizard attaches required features and metadata fields automatically.
## Prerequisites [#prerequisites]
You need the Asset manager role on the system access manager and a fully onboarded account with a verified identity. Your wallet must be configured for PIN or OTP verification. A published instrument template for the target asset class, backed by a usable token factory, must also be in place.
## Asset classes and templates [#asset-classes-and-templates]
The Asset Designer uses the asset classes, published instrument templates, and usable token factories configured for your system. DALP shows only asset classes that have at least one usable published template.
If your system has exactly one available asset class, the wizard selects it and starts at template selection.
System configurations commonly group templates into the following classes.
| Asset class | Common templates | Description |
| ---------------- | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| Fixed Income | Bond | Debt securities with maturity dates and fixed payments |
| Flexible Income | Equity, Fund | Variable return assets like shares and investment funds |
| Cash Equivalent | Stablecoin, Deposit | Stable value assets pegged to fiat currencies |
| Real World Asset | Precious Metal, Real Estate | Tokenized physical assets and property ownership |
If your organization has custom asset classes or templates, use the names and fields shown in your console as the source of truth.
## How composition works [#how-composition-works]
An Asset Designer deployment combines four layers:
| Layer | What it decides | When you configure it |
| ---------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Asset class | The business category shown in the console, such as Fixed Income or Real World Asset. | Select it first so the wizard can show matching published templates. |
| Instrument template | The deployable asset type, required token features, template defaults, and any template metadata fields. | Select it after the asset class. Disabled templates name the missing prerequisite token when one is required. |
| Asset basics and metadata | The asset name, symbol, decimals, jurisdiction, and any template-specific fields. | Complete these before compliance because the selected template and asset type determine which details the wizard needs. |
| Compliance and initial roles | The transfer, holder, minting, redemption, and operational controls applied to the asset. | Configure them before the summary so the final deployment includes both policy controls and the wallets that can operate the asset. |
Follow this order to avoid mixing concepts. The template defines what the asset can be. Metadata describes the specific instrument. Compliance modules decide who may interact with it, and initial roles decide who can operate it after deployment.
## Steps [#steps]
### Open the asset designer [#open-the-asset-designer]
Click Asset designer in the sidebar under **Asset management** to open the wizard. The wizard runs as a routed flow under `/asset-designer`. Each step has its own URL, so browser Back and Forward move between steps instead of leaving the flow. If you refresh the page while creating an asset, the wizard restores your in-progress values and returns you to the current step in the same browser session.
If you navigate away from `/asset-designer` after making any progress (choosing an asset class, selecting a template, entering a name or symbol, picking a compliance template, or setting permissions), the platform asks you to confirm before discarding the wizard state. A successful deployment, an in-app leave you confirm, or sign-out clears the saved state.
### Select asset class [#select-asset-class]
Choose the asset class that matches your security type. DALP shows only classes that have at least one usable published template. Choosing a different class clears the previous template selection, template-specific metadata, and feature inputs so stale values do not carry into the next asset.
### Select instrument template [#select-instrument-template]
Choose the published instrument template for the asset you want to create. The wizard shows the required features and compliance options attached to each available template. Required features are token behaviors the selected template attaches during deployment, not optional choices you remove during issuance.
If a template needs a prerequisite token that is not available in your tenant, the template card stays disabled and names the missing prerequisite. Use the card button to create the needed token or [register an existing external token](/docs/operators/asset-servicing/register-external-token), then return to the wizard and select the template after the prerequisite is available.
### Review template-required features [#review-template-required-features]
Instrument templates can include required features. When a template has required features, the Asset Designer shows them as badges during template selection. The deployed asset inherits those token-level behaviors from the selected template, then asks for additional inputs only for the badges that need configuration.
#### Template-specific fields and defaults [#template-specific-fields-and-defaults]
Selecting an instrument template can prefill feature settings and metadata values in the wizard. The Asset Designer clears feature-specific values from the previous selection before applying the new template, so switching templates does not carry old maturity, yield, fee, or conversion inputs into the next asset.
Templates can also add metadata fields to the follow-up details step. These fields can be text, number, date, enum, ISIN, or address inputs. Required metadata fields must be filled before the wizard continues.
Template defaults are applied when you select the template.
For required-feature badges, fields that are fixed by the template can remain hidden while still being submitted with the asset configuration.
Template feature settings that are not part of the template's required features can seed the wizard, but they are not submitted as standalone feature configurations.
#### Prerequisite tokens [#prerequisite-tokens]
Some required features need an existing token before you can select the template. The table below lists which token each feature checks for and what the wizard shows when it is missing.
| Required feature on the template | Prerequisite checked in the wizard | If it is missing |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Maturity Redemption, Fixed Treasury Yield, or External Transaction Fee | Any ERC-20 token that can act as a denomination or fee asset | The template card is disabled with a "Requires a denomination asset" message. Create or register an ERC-20 denomination or fee asset before selecting the template. |
| Conversion | An equity-class target token | The template card is disabled with a "Requires an equity-class target token" message. Create an equity token or register an existing equity token before selecting the template. |
The prerequisite check looks at tokens and registered external tokens in the tenant. It only decides whether the template can be picked. The contract and deployment workflow still validate the selected token addresses and feature settings when you submit the asset.
#### Self-contained required features [#self-contained-required-features]
These badges do not add a follow-up configuration step from the required-feature badge itself. Use the [token feature catalog](/docs/architects/components/token-features) for the canonical behavior reference.
Current self-contained badges include Historical Balances, Voting Power, Permit, Transaction Fee, Transaction Fee Accounting, Fixed Treasury Yield, and Conversion Minter. Transaction-fee badges only create non-zero fee behavior when the template supplies fee settings; Fixed Treasury Yield only creates a configured yield schedule when the template supplies yield settings.
#### Configurable required features [#configurable-required-features]
These badges show follow-up inputs in the Asset Designer after template selection. Use the [token feature catalog](/docs/architects/components/token-features) for canonical feature behavior; this table only lists the extra guided inputs.
| Feature | Asset Designer asks for |
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| [Maturity Redemption](/docs/architects/components/token-features/maturity-redemption) | Maturity date, denomination asset, face value, and redemption treasury. |
| [AUM Fee](/docs/architects/components/token-features/aum-fee) | Management-fee basis points and recipient settings. |
| [External Transaction Fee](/docs/architects/components/token-features/external-transaction-fee) | External fee token, absolute mint, burn, or transfer fees, and recipient settings. |
| [Conversion](/docs/architects/components/token-features/conversion) | Target token, denomination asset, discount, conversion window, debt handling, and related rules. |
Required features define what the token can do. Self-contained badges are inherited directly from the template;
transaction-fee badges only create non-zero fee behavior when the template supplies fee settings. Configurable badges
add feature-specific inputs to the guided setup. Compliance modules define who may hold, transfer, mint, or redeem
under your policy.
### Configure asset basics [#configure-asset-basics]
Enter the core asset properties. The Asset Designer shows live character counters below text inputs and checks these values before you can continue, so use values that describe the exact instrument you intend to deploy.
| Field | What to enter |
| ------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Name | Full asset name, up to 50 characters, such as "Acme Corporate Bond 2025". |
| Symbol | Trading symbol using uppercase letters and numbers. The field accepts up to 12 characters and suggests 3-12 characters for market-style use. |
| Decimals | Decimal precision from 0 to 18. Use 18 for standard ERC-20-style precision, 6 for USDC-style precision, or 0 for whole units only. |
| Jurisdiction | Country for the asset's regulatory jurisdiction. DALP submits this as an ISO 3166-1 numeric country code. |
When the symbol field is empty, the wizard suggests a symbol from the asset name. A one-word name uses the first five letters, a two-word name combines the beginning of both words, and longer names use an acronym. You can replace the suggestion before continuing.
Most asset classes also take a base price and a pricing currency here. Use the currency picker next to the base price to choose the fiat currency the price is quoted in. Type in the search box to narrow the list. The picker matches by ISO 4217 code, currency name, and country name, so you can find any option without knowing its code. Searching `Malaysia` or `Malaysian Ringgit`, for example, finds `MYR`. Matching ignores case and accents, and each entry is labelled `Currency name (CODE)` so you can confirm the right one before you select it. The picker offers a curated set rather than the full ISO 4217 list.
Maturity-bearing assets such as bonds are priced against their denomination asset, so they do not show the base price and currency fields in this step.
When DALP shows an availability status, it is based on the selected asset type, name, symbol, and decimals together. Changing any of those values clears the previous result and starts a new check. The same changes update the asset summary that you review before deployment. If the new status says the combination is unavailable or the check cannot complete, update the basics and wait for the status to show that the asset can continue.
### Configure asset details [#configure-asset-details]
Complete the template-specific fields shown by the wizard. DALP inserts the details step only when the selected template exposes configurable required-feature inputs or metadata fields. Templates without input fields skip directly to pricing.
For a precious metal asset, this step records the metal metadata and terms: metal type, purity grade, vault location, custodian (all three are optional), weight unit, and weight per token. Price currency and base price are part of the asset basics. Use these fields to describe the tokenized metal program; keep assay certificates, storage receipts, insurance documents, and other backing evidence in your external operating records or token document uploads.
### Choose compliance controls [#choose-compliance-controls]
The compliance step starts from a policy template rather than a blank list of modules. Under "Choose a Policy template", the wizard shows the published policy templates available to your organization, each labelled DALP Library or Organisation and tagged with its jurisdictions and the number of controls it carries. Selecting a template applies its full set of controls to the asset in one step, so most operators do not configure modules by hand.
You have three ways to set compliance here:
* **Pick a policy template** to apply a curated set of controls for a jurisdiction or program. Policy templates keep asset configurations consistent and match the controls your compliance team has already approved.
* **Select No compliance** to deploy the asset with no controls. DALP warns that holders and transfers will not be screened. You can still install compliance modules later from the asset's Compliance tab.
* **Turn on Advanced configuration** to build the control set yourself. The toggle reveals an enabled-controls list and an available-controls list so you can add or remove individual modules.
#### Individual compliance controls [#individual-compliance-controls]
Advanced configuration and the policy templates draw from the same set of on-chain controls. Each control is enforced automatically for every transfer.
| Module | Description |
| --------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Identity verification | Requires both sender and recipient wallets to have a verified OnchainID with valid compliance verifications (e.g., KYC, accreditation). Wallets without verified identity cannot send or receive the asset. |
| Country allow list | Only wallets with an OnchainID issued in specified countries can hold the asset. Use for securities restricted to certain jurisdictions. |
| Country block list | Wallets with an OnchainID from blocked countries cannot hold the asset. Use for sanctions compliance or regulatory restrictions. |
| Address block list | Explicitly block specific wallet addresses from holding or transferring the asset, regardless of their identity status. |
| Investor count limit | Caps the maximum number of unique wallet addresses that can hold the asset. Useful for private placements with regulatory investor limits (e.g., Reg D 99 investor cap). |
| Time lock | Enforces a minimum holding period before the asset can be transferred. Investors must hold for the specified duration after receiving units. |
| Transfer approval | Requires an authorized approver to manually approve each transfer before it executes. Use for securities requiring transfer agent oversight. |
| [Collateral requirement](/docs/operators/compliance/collateral) | Requires sufficient collateral backing before minting new units. Validates only minting operations, not transfers. |
When you apply a policy template, the asset must submit every control the template declares. DALP rejects the deployment when those controls are missing from the final configuration, or when a country allow list has no countries selected, because an empty allow list would block every transfer.
For more details on compliance modules, see the [compliance overview](/docs/operators/compliance/overview).
### Set initial asset permissions [#set-initial-asset-permissions]
Confirm which wallets should receive asset-level roles when DALP deploys the token. The wizard keeps your connected wallet in the permission list with the Admin, Governance, Supply Management, and Emergency roles, and you cannot remove your own entry. Together these let you run the first operating steps yourself after deployment: Emergency authorizes unpausing the asset, and Supply Management authorizes minting the first supply.
Use Add permission to grant another wallet one or more asset roles before deployment. Current asset-level roles include Admin, Custodian, Emergency, Funds Manager, Governance, Sale Admin, and Supply Management. Add only the roles each wallet needs for its first operating step.
### Review and deploy [#review-and-deploy]
Review the selected template, asset details, compliance controls, and initial permissions on the summary page. The summary also lists the token-feature settings you configured, grouped under the instrument template, so you can confirm them at the last checkpoint before the transaction goes out.
For a convertible note, the summary includes conversion settings: the target token, the denomination asset, and the discount as a percentage. Confirm these before proceeding. They decide how holdings convert and are the highest-risk part of the configuration.
When ready, click **Deploy** and authenticate with your PIN or OTP to submit the transaction. After authentication, the platform broadcasts the deployment transaction to the network.
## After deployment [#after-deployment]
After the transaction confirms:
* Your new asset appears under Asset management in the sidebar, listed under its asset class, such as Fixed income > Bonds.
* DALP grants the initial asset roles you reviewed in the permissions step.
* The platform issues pricing and classification verifications to the asset's identity.
* The asset remains paused unless you selected the unpause option on the summary step during creation.
### Activating the asset [#activating-the-asset]
By default, new assets are created in a paused state to allow review and final approvals before going live. This gives compliance teams a review point before any units are issued.
If your operating process allows launch-time activation, select the **unpause on creation** option on the summary step before deployment.
To activate the asset:
1. Navigate to the asset detail page under Asset management in the sidebar
2. Click **Manage Asset** and select **Unpause**
3. Authenticate with your PIN or OTP to confirm
You created this asset, so your wallet already holds the Emergency role that authorizes unpausing. You can run this step yourself, without waiting for another administrator.
Unpausing needs the Emergency asset role. The wallet that creates an asset in the Asset Designer receives it
automatically. If you are unpausing an asset someone else created and your wallet lacks the role, DALP shows the
Unpause button as disabled with a not-authorized message. Ask an administrator to grant you the Emergency role.
Once unpaused, authorized users can begin [issuing the asset](/docs/operators/asset-servicing/mint-assets) to investor accounts.
## Troubleshooting [#troubleshooting]
| Issue | Solution |
| --------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Create Asset button disabled | Verify your account is onboarded and has permission to create tokens for the system. The wizard redirects users who do not have that permission. |
| Instrument template not available | Use [Select instrument template](#select-instrument-template) to choose a published template for the chosen asset class, or ask an administrator to publish one backed by a usable token factory. |
| Deployment fails | Ensure wallet has sufficient gas and wallet verification is configured |
| Missing template feature inputs | Confirm the selected published instrument template is linked to a usable token factory and includes the required feature configuration. |
| Missing compliance options | Use [Choose compliance controls](#choose-compliance-controls) to confirm the needed compliance rules are selected and configured for the asset. If you applied a policy template, every required control must appear in the final configuration. |
| Empty country allow list | Add at least one allowed country, remove the country allow-list control, or choose a different compliance template. An empty allow list blocks every transfer, so DALP rejects it before deployment. |