Wall Street Is Embracing Blockchain— SEC Has Cleared Way for Tokenized Stocks
Ринки 03.10.2026 11:39
The tokenization of traditional securities is becoming one of the fastest-growing areas of the crypto industry: the U.S. regulator has authorized experimental trading of tokenized exchange-traded stocks directly through blockchain platforms, and major market participants are preparing to migrate traditional financial instruments to the digital asset infrastructure.
On September 17, 2026, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) granted a temporary conditional exemption allowing limited trading of tokenized stocks included in the U.S. National Market System (NMS) on special blockchain platforms known as Tokenized Securities Venues (TSV).
The exemption is granted for a period of five years and effectively creates an experimental regulatory environment in which market participants can test how trading in traditional securities works directly on the blockchain.
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins called the decision a step toward bringing U.S. capital markets into the digital age.
However, the regulator has imposed important restrictions. Eligible instruments must represent actual U.S. stocks, and the token must grant the holder the same economic and corporate rights as a traditional security, including the right to dividends and voting. Issuers also have the option to prohibit the trading of the tokenized version of their shares.
This fundamentally distinguishes the SEC’s new model from some existing cryptocurrency products, which merely track the value of shares but do not make the holder a full-fledged shareholder.
Tokenization involves creating a digital representation of a traditional asset on the blockchain. As a result, shares can potentially be transferred between wallets, used within the digital financial infrastructure, and traded for much longer than during a traditional trading session.
The New York Stock Exchange has taken the next important step. On September 23, NYSE Group and Blockchain.com announced a strategic partnership to explore the possibility of global trading in tokenized versions of U.S. stocks and ETFs.
The companies are considering a model for 24/7/365 access to such assets—without the traditional constraints of trading hours and geography. The project’s implementation will depend on regulatory approvals.
If the project is implemented, it has the potential to significantly change the traditional architecture of the stock market. U.S. stocks are currently traded primarily during established exchange hours, whereas cryptocurrencies are traded around the clock, seven days a week.
As securities are transferred to the blockchain, the boundary between these two markets is gradually beginning to disappear.
Moreover, the first working models already exist.
The cryptocurrency exchange Kraken offers a line of xStocks—tokenized versions of U.S. stocks and ETFs. These include Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, Amazon, Coinbase, Berkshire Hathaway, and other major companies.
Since the launch of xStocks in June 2025, the total trading volume for these instruments has exceeded $25 billion, according to Kraken. By March 2026, the lineup had reached 100 tokenized stocks and ETFs, and the company announced plans to expand it to more than 500 instruments by the end of the year.
However, there is an important difference between xStocks and the model that the SEC is now allowing to be tested.
xStocks are backed by the corresponding stocks on a 1:1 basis; however, the tokens themselves do not grant holders standard shareholder rights, particularly voting rights. They primarily provide economic exposure to the value of the underlying stock.
Furthermore, xStocks are not yet available to U.S. retail customers and are subject to geographic restrictions in several other countries.
The new U.S. regulatory model goes further: the SEC permits tokenized NMS shares provided that the rights associated with a traditional security are preserved.
This is precisely why the regulator’s decision could prove significantly more important for the market’s future development than the emergence of individual cryptocurrency equivalents of stocks.
Tokenization can bring several characteristics to the stock market that until now have been primarily associated with cryptocurrencies: nearly round-the-clock trading, faster settlements, the ability to execute programmable transactions, and a potential reduction in the number of intermediaries.
In addition, a single high-value asset can technically be divided into very small digital shares, which lowers the entry barrier for retail investors.
For international investors, another factor is particularly important: geography. In theory, blockchain can significantly simplify access to the U.S. market for investors from different countries without the need to build a traditional chain involving a local broker, an international broker, a depository, and other intermediaries.
But along with the advantages come new risks.
Tokenization does not override securities laws. It is necessary to determine who actually owns the underlying stock, what rights the token holder receives, how dividends and corporate voting are handled, who is responsible for asset custody, and what will happen in the event of the bankruptcy of the token issuer or the technology platform.
Liquidity poses a separate challenge. If the same stock exists simultaneously on the NYSE, Nasdaq, and several blockchains, capital may end up being spread across multiple trading platforms.
There are also technological risks—ranging from smart contract errors to cyberattacks and problems with blockchain infrastructure.
For this reason, the SEC is not yet converting the experimental framework into permanent legislation. The five-year exemption should allow the regulator and the market to test the technology in practice, after which permanent rules may be established.
But the direction of the market’s development is becoming increasingly clear.
While tokenization was previously primarily an experiment by cryptocurrency companies, the U.S. securities regulator and traditional exchange infrastructure are now directly involved in the process.
In the long run, this could lead to the emergence of a market where shares of Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, and other major companies will trade simultaneously in the traditional stock exchange system and on the blockchain.
In this case, the main consequence of tokenization will not be the emergence of yet another type of crypto asset, but rather the gradual blurring of the technological boundary between the stock and cryptocurrency markets.
Sources: SEC, NYSE/Blockchain.com, Kraken.
