The American financial press is waking up to the fact that crypto, digital assets and the tokenization of stocks are about to completely change how stock exchanges and stock trading work.
Over a little more than a week in October, four of the biggest names in American financial media wrote about the tokenization of stocks: Barron's with a cover story on October 9, The Wall Street Journal with two pieces on October 7 and 9, CNBC on October 8–9, and Bloomberg in a newsletter on October 8. Tokenizing stocks means that ownership in publicly listed companies is recorded and transferred as digital tokens on a blockchain, instead of through the traditional settlement systems run by exchanges and custodian banks. The goal is markets that are open around the clock, faster settlement, and easier use of securities as collateral.
Barron's opens its cover story by pointing to the contrast between the capital and the financial center: in Washington, the crypto industry had just suffered a crushing legislative defeat, while the tokenization of financial markets on Wall Street was moving ahead fast. According to the magazine, the future is already here – crypto technology is moving from the fringes toward the center of finance, regardless of what lawmakers decide.
The goal of tokenized stocks is markets that trade continuously, without the fixed hours exchanges keep today. Barron's describes the shift as one of the biggest upgrades to financial infrastructure since the move from paper to electronic trading.
The Wall Street Journal reported that former New York governor Andrew Cuomo has taken the chair of OKXICE, a joint venture between exchange giant ICE – owner of the New York Stock Exchange – and crypto exchange OKX. The venture plans to tokenize stocks, and according to Cuomo it brings "radical change" to the markets.
In a separate piece, The Wall Street Journal noted that a recent SEC order sets in motion plans to bring stock tokens to the US market. That builds on what has already happened this year: the SEC approved a Nasdaq proposal in March to let securities trade in tokenized form, and the exchange is now developing its own framework for stock tokens designed to preserve shareholder rights and existing market protections. In September, the SEC also granted temporary, conditional relief letting certain venues offer tokenized US stocks through permissioned on-chain systems.
CNBC quoted Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman from the Token2049 crypto conference in Singapore, where she argued that blockchain technology could fundamentally change how money and securities move through global financial markets. Banks and other financial institutions routinely pledge Treasuries, equities and money-market instruments as collateral. Turning those into transferable digital tokens could make collateral far more liquid and free up capital that would otherwise sit idle, according to Friedman.
– If we can tokenize money, then we can tokenize the flow of capital, she said.
Friedman ties the shift to another structural change: markets that are open around the clock. Retail investors have pushed for continuous trading for years, while institutions are now increasingly exploring how to keep capital moving outside traditional market hours too. Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi said in the same conversation that companies outside the US are now exploring tokenization and seeking better access to American capital markets.
In a newsletter from the Token2049 conference in Singapore, Bloomberg described how the crypto industry is trading hoodies for suits. The shift reflects a broader change in the crypto industry's relationship with traditional finance, according to the outlet.
Sources: Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, CNBC, Barron's
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