BlackRock-backed Securitize and Computershare are bringing parts of the $70 trillion U.S. stock market onto the chain through tokenized stocks, in a move that brings traditional Wall Street infrastructure closer to the blockchain rails.
The deal allows listed companies to add tokenized shares, called issuer-sponsored tokens (IST), alongside existing shares, giving investors the option of holding shares through traditional systems or in a digital wallet.
The effort is part of a broader push to make tokenized stocks work within current market rules while offering new ways to hold and move assets, from wallet-based ownership to faster settlement. Transfer agents like Computershare sit at the center of that system, maintaining shareholder records and handling corporate actions.
By integrating into that layer, the companies aim to avoid a common cryptographic solution, in which tokens represent rights to shares rather than the shares themselves.
Securitize is a blockchain-based company that allows real-world assets, such as stocks and funds, to be issued, traded and managed in tokenized form on blockchain networks. The company is best known for issuing asset management giant BlackRock’s $2.5 billion tokenized money market fund and for helping the New York Stock Exchange build its tokenized stock platform. It also aims to go public later this year through a SPAC deal with Cantor Equity Partners II (CEPT).
Blockchain meets transfer agents
Depending on the setup, Computershare will act as a transfer agent for tokenized shares just as it does for traditional ones. That includes managing records and processing events like dividends or stock splits in both formats.
Securitize provides the underlying technology, but like other recent efforts in the space, the blockchain component remains largely in the background. The tokens are designed to represent direct ownership, not derivatives layered on existing shares.
“ISTs do not rely on derivative tokens that sit on top of underlying stocks,” said Securitize CEO Carlos Domingo. “They offer U.S. issuers the ability to create direct equity ownership in token form.”
Computershare’s reach could give scale to the effort. The firm serves more than 25,000 companies and acts as a transfer agent for approximately 58% of the S&P 500.
The structure also keeps issuers in control of their shareholder base, a key requirement for public companies. “Our goal has been to empower U.S.-listed companies to issue tokenized shares while retaining control,” said Ann Bowering, executive director of issuer services at Computershare North America.
