In a significant move, Securitize, backed by BlackRock, and Computershare are set to bring a portion of the $70 trillion US stock market onto the blockchain through tokenized equities, bridging traditional Wall Street infrastructure with blockchain technology. The partnership allows listed companies to introduce tokenized equity, known as Issuer-Sponsored Tokens (ISTs), alongside existing shares, providing investors with the option to hold stocks through traditional systems or digital wallets.
This initiative is part of a broader effort to integrate tokenized shares into current market regulations while offering innovative ways to hold and transfer assets, including wallet-based ownership and faster settlement. Transfer agents like Computershare play a central role in this system, maintaining shareholder records and handling corporate actions. By integrating at this level, the companies aim to avoid a common cryptocurrency workaround where tokens represent claims on shares rather than the shares themselves.
Securitize, a blockchain-based firm, enables real-world assets like equities and funds to be issued, traded, and managed in tokenized form on blockchain networks. The company is known for issuing BlackRock's $2.5 billion tokenized money market fund and helping the New York Stock Exchange build its tokenized equity platform, with plans to go public later this year via a SPAC deal with Cantor Equity Partners II (CEPT). Under this setup, Computershare will act as transfer agent for tokenized shares, managing records and processing events like dividends or stock splits across both formats. Securitize provides the underlying technology, with the blockchain component largely in the background, and the tokens are designed to represent direct ownership, not derivatives layered on top of existing stock.
According to Securitize CEO Carlos Domingo, 'ISTs do not rely on derivative tokens that sit on top of underlying shares. They provide US issuers with the ability to create direct equity ownership in token form.' With Computershare serving over 25,000 companies and acting as a transfer agent for about 58% of the S&P 500, this partnership could bring the effort to scale. The structure also allows issuers to maintain control over their shareholder base, a key requirement for public companies.
As Ann Bowering, CEO of issuer services at Computershare North America, noted, 'Our focus has been to empower US-listed companies to issue tokenized equity while retaining control.'