Earlier this month, Robinhood (HOOD) expanded its tokenized equity offering beyond European users, and Coinbase (COIN) also plans to offer equity tokens. The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the backbone of the US securities markets, has begun testing tokenized securities infrastructure, while Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange have also started tokenization initiatives.
The push points to growing belief that tokenization — the process of representing traditional assets as blockchain-based tokens — can upgrade capital markets with faster settlement, around-the-clock trading and more efficient movement of assets. Citi estimated that tokenized securities could grow to a $5.5 trillion market by 2030, including $2.6 trillion in tokenized stocks.
Until now, tokenized stock platforms have largely focused on replicating US markets onchain and offering blockchain-based versions of popular stocks such as Nvidia (NVDA), Apple (AAPL), and Tesla (TSLA). Expanding xStocks into overseas markets gives investors access to a wider universe of companies, including high-flying Asian firms linked to the AI supply chain that have become popular with global retailers.
The GTN partnership marks the next phase of xStocks, which started last year with tokenized US stocks and exchange-traded funds. The platform now supports more than 500 tokenized securities, has processed more than $35 billion in trading volume and has nearly 200,000 holders, according to Payward. The products remain unavailable to US investors.
