By Staff Writer
Nasdaq has filed with the SEC to allow the listing of tokenized stocks alongside traditional securities.
The move would integrate blockchain-based equities into regulated U.S. markets rather than leaving them to offshore venues.
If approved, Nasdaq could become the first major U.S. exchange to host tokenized securities under federal oversight.
In a move that could reshape the way Wall Street thinks about digital assets, Nasdaq has filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for approval to list tokenized versions of stocks.
The filing, first reported by Bloomberg, goes far beyond a technical rule change. Nasdaq is effectively asking regulators to allow tokenized assets to sit side by side with traditional securities under the same framework, from execution to clearing. In simple terms, the exchange wants blockchain-based equities to be treated just like regular shares.
Under Nasdaq’s proposal, tokenized assets would be clearly labeled, ensuring clearinghouses like the Depository Trust Company (DTC) can process them without confusion. Orders for tokenized stocks would carry the same priority as traditional equities, meaning they wouldn’t be sidelined in execution queues.
In practice, this would create a system where securities could exist in two forms:
as a standard digital record, or
as a blockchain-based tokenized version.
Nasdaq stressed in its filing that while tokenization is new technology, the trading of tokenized securities must still take place in regulated markets, overseen by national exchanges, FINRA-regulated brokers or approved alternative trading systems.
“Although tokenization technology presents novel capabilities by which to record evidence of securities ownership and transactions, the trading of tokenized securities must occur in regulated markets,” Nasdaq wrote.
The exchange was clear about what it’s trying to avoid: unregulated offshore venues. In parts of Europe, for example, platforms already offer tokenized US equities through digital rights. But these products often exclude core shareholder benefits like voting rights, making them more of a substitute than the real thing.
Nasdaq argued that leaving tokenized equities to fragmented, unregulated platforms risks harming investors by diluting liquidity and obscuring price discovery. Its pitch is that by embedding tokenization within the US national market system, investors can enjoy both the efficiency of blockchain settlement and the protections of regulation.
Around the world, momentum for real-world asset (RWA) tokenization is building fast. European exchanges such as Boerse Stuttgart have already launched tokenized platforms, while fintech firms are rolling out tokenized versions of US equities and ETFs abroad.
For investors, Nasdaq admits tokenization isn’t about access. Equities are already easily tradable through existing brokerages. Instead, it’s about modernizing settlement and preparing US markets for a world where tokenized assets are the norm rather than the exception.
If the SEC gives the green light, Nasdaq would be the first major US exchange to formally list tokenized securities under federal oversight. It would set a powerful precedent for Wall Street and cement tokenization as a serious chapter in the evolution of global capital markets.
