Nasdaq Builds the Bridge: Tokenized Stocks Enter Regulated Market Infrastructure
The American stock exchange Nasdaq, home to the world’s largest technology companies, is taking decisive steps to integrate blockchain technology into the core structure of the capital market. This is not merely an experiment, but a purposeful push within the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the approval of a proposal allowing the trading of tokenized stocks.
The essence of the proposal submitted to the SEC is to create a system that will offer investors a choice: to trade shares in the traditional way or to use tokens—digital representations of securities on a blockchain. Nasdaq emphasizes that both options will have the same execution priority, and tokenized shares will retain the full scope of rights to the underlying securities, including voting rights.
A key aspect is that clearing and settlement for tokens, just like for conventional stocks, will be conducted through the Depository Trust Company (DTC). This is a crucial point, as it allows blockchain innovation to be implemented without undermining or fragmenting the existing, time-tested system of investor protection and settlement. Nasdaq aims not to replace the system, but to expand its capabilities by integrating tokenization into its structure.
This move by Nasdaq is a direct response to the rapid development of the tokenization market and the desire to prevent stock liquidity from being fragmented and isolated on unregulated crypto platforms. The exchange is essentially offering an “elegant way” to transition to digital assets, where trading and settlement can occur either on the traditional or the blockchain ledger, while preserving a single securities identification number (CUSIP).
The initiative closely aligns with the priorities of the SEC itself. The Commission’s Chairman, in particular, has stated that asset tokenization is one of the key focus areas of the regulator’s “Project Crypto.” Despite some traditional market players expressing concerns about the changes, Nasdaq positions its proposal as a responsible approach that gradually introduces the benefits of blockchain—such as increased collateral mobility and the potential reduction of risks through compressed settlement cycles—into the mainstream of the financial industry.
