Ainda sem o Clarity Act, Wall Street acelera tokenização, diz a Barron’s

"Ainda sem o Clarity Act, Wall Street acelera tokenização, diz a Barron’s" (Barron's)

The Clarity Act, which would provide legal security for cryptocurrency trading and ownership in the US, has passed the Senate. However, Wall Street is now eager to jump into the era of tokenization. This topic was the cover story in this week's Barron’s. Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), announced a joint venture with OKX, a crypto exchange based in California.

Each company will hold a 50% stake in the OKXICE platform, which will enable the trading of tokenized stocks. Andrew Cuomo, the former governor of New York and co-chair of OKXICE, described the transition to tokenized asset trading as a "decisive step toward a truly global and round-the-clock Wall Street." Speaking to Barron's, Cuomo likened the shift to automated real estate credit analysis or the digitalization of the stock market in the early 2000s.

Investors worldwide will no longer be limited to trading hours in the US market, and the nearly instantaneous liquidity through a blockchain will free up capital that can currently sit idle for days awaiting transfer completion. "I hope Wall Street remains Wall Street, but it will have to operate differently," Cuomo stated. The change is permitted due to a recent SEC decision granting a temporary "innovation exemption" and authorizing the trading of tokenized stocks, provided certain rules are followed – including notifying the issuing companies of the stocks 30 days in advance and only creating the new asset if there is no objection.

The SEC guideline was published shortly after the Clarity Act failed to gain the necessary votes in the Senate, revealing the Trump administration's commitment to promoting crypto assets despite congressional resistance. NYSE is not the only one eager to jump into the blockchain era. Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman said tokenization would release tens of billions of dollars in capital that is currently immobilized as collateral.

"If we tokenize all these instruments along with the flow of money, the guarantee becomes very fluid," Friedman told CNBC. NYSE and Nasdaq are both developing their own platforms, in partnership with Payward, the parent company of exchange Kraken. Just like NYSE, Nasdaq is also building its platform, in partnership with Payward, the parent company of exchange Kraken.

Even before the recent SEC exemption, Robinhood had launched (last year) tokenized stock trading – but only for its European clients. US customers will soon have this option. Citigroup analysts estimated the tokenized assets market could reach US$ 5.5 trillion by 2030, with a bullish scenario reaching US$ 8.2 trillion. Today, the market is only valued at 'just' US$ 17 billion.

This market would include not just stocks, but any assets that could potentially migrate to the blockchain – such as securities, funds, and perhaps even less liquid assets like real estate. Today, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the financial industry entity responsible for processing and clearing trades, will launch a platform that will allow its clients to tokenize stocks, ETFs, and securities.

With this new platform, assets can be converted to traditional assets and vice versa. Trades between holders will occur nearly instantaneously, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.