NYSE Teams with Blockchain.com on Tokenized US Stocks

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Blockchain.com have partnered to bring tokenized US stocks to crypto users. The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding, allowing Blockchain.com users to access tokenized US-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds through NYSE's planned digital trading platform.

Under the proposed arrangement, Blockchain.com would distribute tokenized US equities and ETFs traded on NYSE's digital alternative trading system (ATS), subject to regulatory approval. This deal extends NYSE's planned tokenized securities offering to Blockchain.com's global customer base.

The agreement also covers an exchange of market data. NYSE affiliate ICE Data Services plans to distribute Blockchain.com's crypto market data and analytics to its clients, while Blockchain.com would add certain ICE and NYSE market data feeds to its platform.

Reid Noch, vice president of US equity market structure at TD Securities, said that NYSE's planned tokenized ATS appears 'primarily like a play for retail flow.' He pointed out the plan for 24/7 trading and request-for-quote functionality, which would require little change to existing retail workflows.

The partnership comes as the tokenized stock market continues to expand rapidly. Distributed value reached $3.14 billion as of Wednesday, up over 18% in the past 30 days, while the number of holders climbed nearly 72% to 3.87 million, according to RWA.xyz data.

The SEC introduced a five-year 'Innovation Exemption' for certain tokenized securities venues just last week. The exemption allows eligible tokenized securities venues to use permissioned automated market maker liquidity pools to facilitate trading without being treated as exchanges under the Exchange Act.