Written by: Daii
The excitement around dollar stablecoins has not yet subsided, and the wave of tokenized US stocks is quietly rising.
While you are still amazed that Apple stocks can also be bought on-chain, the US financial system has quietly embedded itself into your wallet.
Tokenized US stocks appear to be just a technological trend: 24/7 operation, low thresholds, divisible, and combinable. But what you truly gain goes far beyond these conveniences. You have obtained a complete set of 'financial operating systems' led by the SEC, shaped by Wall Street practices, and honed over many years—regulatory logic, compliance standards, and information disclosure systems all embedded in the back of these on-chain tokens through code.
Stablecoins export dollar credit, while the tokenization of US stocks exports the US regulatory system itself.
You no longer need US identity or a Nasdaq account; with just a wallet address and some USDC, you can buy AAPLx and TSLAx at 3 AM. However, while enjoying this 'global liquidity dividend,' it also means that global capital is increasingly operating on the rules set by the US.
This is not a conspiracy; it is an overt strategy.
On the surface, tokenization of US stocks is a technological innovation; in essence, it is a form of institutional export; superficially an open market, but in reality, under the banner of 'regulatory compliance,' using 'trustworthy transparency' as bait, it siphons attention, asset flow, and the redistribution rights of financial sovereignty globally.
This is an expansion without war, a global credit conquest completed in the name of compliance.
1. Tokenized Assets: Transforming US Stocks into Global 'Programmable Assets'
What is tokenization of US stocks? Simply put, it is the bundling of rights to earnings, dividends, and even some governance rights of US stocks into tokens issued on-chain through a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) or custodian using blockchain technology.
Specifically, you can now use 1 USDC to buy 0.0047 shares of APPLx on Jupiter. APPLx is the tokenized representation of Apple Inc. stock on the Solana blockchain, corresponding to the actual Apple shares held on your behalf by the SPV custodian.
The generation process of this APPLx (Tokenized Apple Stock) token is essentially a cross-border compliance + technical mapping mechanism, covering traditional finance, digital asset custody, and blockchain issuance in three stages, as follows:
Real-World Share Acquisition is first conducted by Backed Finance AG, a digital asset service provider registered with the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), through its partner brokers, such as Interactive Brokers LLC or other licensed brokers in the US, to purchase a certain number of Apple (Apple Inc., AAPL) common stocks on the Nasdaq public market.
Custody and SPV Structuring: The AAPL stocks purchased will not be held by Backed itself but will be fully deposited with a regulated third-party financial institution (usually SIX Digital Exchange Custody or an equivalent custodian) and held by a specially established SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle). This SPV entity is typically registered in Liechtenstein or Zug, Switzerland, has a legal status independent of other entities, and its sole responsibility is to 'hold shares and map them,' without engaging in any other business activities, to ensure asset isolation and legal clarity.
Legal Disclosure: Backed Finance will issue detailed legal disclosure statements for each type of token (e.g., ISIN mapping, token terms, prospectus under Liechtenstein TVTG/Blockchain Act), ensuring that token holders have economic rights to the underlying assets but do not directly possess voting rights or other traditional shareholder rights. These statements are generally publicly archived on Backed's official website or compliance disclosure platforms (like DACS or the Swiss Prospectus Register) for regulatory review and investor access.
Token Minting on Solana: Under the above compliance framework, Backed Finance will mint APPLx tokens on the Solana blockchain at a 1:1 ratio based on the number of custody assets, with each token representing 1 actual share of Apple stock. These tokens are typically implemented using smart contract standards (like SPL Token) and are initially distributed under the control of Backed's on-chain multi-signature wallet. Token holders receive APPLx through DeFi wallets (like Phantom) without needing to open a Nasdaq account or provide US tax documents like W-8BEN.
On-chain Circulation & Redemption Mechanism: APPLx can be traded, split, staked, and provided with liquidity (LP) on Solana ecosystem platforms like Jupiter Aggregator, Meteora, Marinade Finance, etc. If users wish to redeem for real stocks (usually limited to qualified investors), they must submit KYC documents and go through Backed's redemption process, where the SPV instructs brokers to transfer real shares.
This is a structure of 'real stocks → SPV custody → legal mapping → on-chain tokens,' emphasizing the authenticity, compliance, and traceability of assets. Although holders are not 'shareholders' in the traditional sense, they gain rights to stock earnings through trust structures and contractual agreements, mapping the value anchor of traditional markets into the blockchain world.
What does this mean?
Although you are only buying a token on the blockchain, the underlying governance logic is indeed defined by the US legal system.
In other words, on-chain tokens have become a 'codified' expression of traditional US stock governance rules.
2. Why US stocks?
Some may ask, since tokenization is a global technological innovation, why aren't European stocks, Hong Kong stocks, or even Chinese A-shares leading the way?
The market has never banned the tokenization of stocks from other countries. Moreover, since blockchain is decentralized, the reason US stocks have become pioneers in tokenization is simply that they have enough allure—many people want to buy them.
So, why do US stocks have such great appeal?
It all boils down to two words: 'transparency.'
Transparency is the most scarce resource in the modern financial system. The reason US stocks can achieve 'high premiums + strong consensus' among global investors is never sentiment but a complete set of extremely transparent regulatory systems.
Of course, the US stock market is highly transparent, and this transparency is not inherent but guaranteed by a complete set of legal rules.
Take the Sarbanes–Oxley Act (SOX) in the US as an example; it was enacted in 2002 after the Enron scandal, and it explicitly states:
The CEO and CFO of a listed company must personally sign off on the financial figures in the annual report.
Once financial fraud is discovered, the management will face criminal liability and even prison time.
Such a system greatly raises the responsibility threshold for corporate governance. Compared to certain Asian markets' phenomenon of 'high valuation + fake financial reports + no consequences,' the credibility of US financial reports has become its most robust selling point.
For instance, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requires all listed companies to publish a 10-Q report quarterly and a 10-K report annually, covering core data such as income, costs, shareholder structure, and risk disclosures.
Let’s briefly explain the 10-Q and 10-K reports. These two report names sound like some kind of code, but they actually originate from the numbered naming convention in US securities regulations.
📘 What is 10-K?
'10-K' refers to the fact that it belongs to the SEC's form numbering system (Form 10 series), while 'K' is the classification code specifically for annual reports.
This name first appeared in the implementation details of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, where the SEC required listed companies to submit an annual 'Form 10-K' report to disclose the overall operational, financial, and compliance status of the company in the previous fiscal year.
So, '10-K' actually means 'Form 10 - K type usage,' which has conventionally become the official code for US stock annual reports.
📗 What is 10-Q?
'10-Q' similarly refers to the specific quarterly report in the '10 series tables.' Here, 'Q' is an abbreviation for 'Quarterly.' US listed companies must submit three 10-Q reports each year, covering the first, second, and third quarters (the fourth quarter is included in the 10-K annual report).
Compared to 10-K, the format of 10-Q is slightly lighter, but it still needs to follow the financial structure and disclosure elements explicitly outlined by the SEC, ensuring that investors can make timely judgments about the company's short-term operational changes.
Thus, the naming of 10-K and 10-Q itself reflects the rigor and standardization of the US securities regulatory system. Each report can be accessed in the SEC's EDGAR system (https://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml), which has become one of the technological and institutional cornerstones for building 'the highest transparency in the global stock market.'
For example, you can see all the latest 10-K and 10-Q reports for TSLA through this link.
The underlying trust built through this information disclosure is precisely what the on-chain world craves.
Now, through tokenization, the 'institutional transparency' of US stocks is being packaged into the blockchain world in the form of 'code templates,' allowing global users to enjoy the benefits of American regulation without having to possess a US identity.
3. The 'Value Engine' of US Stock Tokenization = Regulatory Dividend + Liquidity Dividend
If the global circulation of US dollar stablecoins is the Federal Reserve's 'anchoring trust' export project, then the rise of tokenized US stocks is more like a self-fulfilling prophecy originating from market demand, reflecting regulatory trust.
The regulatory dividend of US stocks provides the 'credibility' of assets; the liquidity dividend of the crypto market further releases the 'accessibility' of the US stock global market. These two are highly coupled through tokenization—one supported by compliance, the other driven by technology, with both being mutually causal, reshaping the basic logic of global asset allocation.
3.1 Liquidity Dividend: Breaking Temporal and Spatial Limits, US Stocks Trade 24/7
In traditional securities markets, trading hours have always been a natural limitation. US stock trading hours are Monday to Friday, from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM Eastern Time, which translates to the late-night hours in Asia. Ordinary Asian users who wish to invest in popular assets like Tesla, Nvidia, and Microsoft often face constraints due to time differences, account thresholds, and even cross-border regulations.
However, after tokenization, everything has changed.
For example, on the Jupiter decentralized exchange on the Solana blockchain, users can now buy and sell tokenized US stocks like TSLAx and AAPLx anytime and anywhere using USDC, without any limits on time, geography, or identity. The trading of these tokens follows the AMM automated market-making logic, operating 24/7 without waiting for market opening, matching counterparties, or account audits.
On-chain, 'US stocks are always open' is no longer a slogan but a real experience.
3.2 Fragmented Ownership: Breaking High Barriers, Amplifying Participation
The minimum trading unit of traditional stocks is 'one share,' which is particularly significant for high-priced assets. For example, at the end of 2024, one share of Amazon (AMZN) is priced over $150, and one share of Berkshire Hathaway Class A is over $500,000. For most small retail investors, these are nearly unattainable investment targets.
Tokenization makes these assets 'programmable' and 'fragmentable.'
Tokenized US stocks like TSLAx and AAPLx can be traded down to 0.0001 units, allowing users to hold a '0.001 stock token of Tesla' with just 1 USDC. This highly fragmentable structure, combined with the global circulation capabilities of stablecoins, opens up investment access for billions worldwide who have never interacted with US stocks.
This is not just about convenience; it's about democratizing participation rights. The distribution of assets no longer depends on intermediaries and account qualifications but solely on whether you have an on-chain wallet.
3.3 DeFi Integration: From 'Investment Products' to 'Callable Assets'
The significance of tokenized US stocks is not just that 'they can be purchased on-chain,' but more importantly, it opens up the imaginative boundaries of real assets for DeFi—
On-chain, these stock tokens are no longer just 'underlying assets' but a type of 'callable asset component': they can circulate, combine, and nest within various smart contracts, gradually integrating into the financial Lego system of the DeFi world.
Currently, tokenized US stocks like AAPLx and TSLAx have gained initial liquidity support on the Solana blockchain and can be traded 24/7 on DEX platforms like Raydium. This also means you can provide liquidity for TSLAx here and earn transaction fees.
Although tokenized US stocks have not yet integrated into lending agreements like Kamino or interest rate agreements, there are clear expectations in the industry: once the liquidity, custody structure, and legal framework of these stock tokens are sufficiently stable, they can be used as collateral, staked, and even 'split into income rights' into PT (principal tokens) + YT (future cash flow tokens) structures, thus introducing a 'secondary market for cash flow' of real-world assets.
For instance, in the future on Rate-X, users might package the dividend income from TSLAx into tokens to be sold in the form of YT, thereby obtaining liquidity in advance—this entire process will require no approval from shareholder meetings and no signing of any offline contracts, fully executed and settled by smart contracts.
This is precisely the greatest charm of the combination of tokenization and DeFi: it is not simply 'putting stocks on-chain,' but turning stocks into asset modules that can be combined, called, and nested, thus unleashing structural innovation capabilities not found in traditional finance.
Of course, everything is still in the early stages, but the direction is set. As platforms like Dinari and Backed Finance push for compliance and transparency in asset custody, we are witnessing an experiment on "how traditional assets can be integrated into an open financial system" gradually coming to reality.
3.4 'Civilian Admission' to the Primary Market: The First Circulation of Unlisted Equity
Recently, Robinhood EU launched tokenized equity services in the EU, further breaking the monopoly of the primary market. In addition to traditional US stocks like Apple and Google, it has also launched tokenized equities for OpenAI and SpaceX, allowing users to gain economic exposure to these star pre-IPO companies with just a few dozen dollars through USDC.
Although this practice still poses legal controversies (OpenAI has publicly stated 'unauthorized'), the trend it reflects is extremely clear: private equity will no longer be a domain only accessible to venture capital and family offices but is becoming an 'on-chain accessible asset class.'
This means that the on-chain 'pre-IPO market' may be earlier, more transparent, and have better pricing feedback mechanisms than actual IPOs.
3.5 Summary
The real value of tokenized US stocks lies not in 'moving stocks on-chain' but in:
US securities regulation provides a credible 'trust template';
Blockchain provides a 'global interface' that can be infinitely replicated, fragmented, and combined.
The regulatory dividend makes people believe that this is a real, redeemable asset; the liquidity dividend turns it into a 'new financial Lego' that never sleeps, can be combined, and generates income.
This is why the world is embracing the tokenization of US stocks. This is not a technological revolution but an institutional evolution about 'how value trust expands.'
The above mentions the advantages of tokenized US stocks. However, do not forget that this new path, while shining, is not without traps.
4. Do not forget the risks of centralization.
You might think that tokenization of US stocks is a brand new concept. In fact, this game has already quietly played out three years ago amidst the chaos of the crypto world.
In April 2021, the rising star FTX launched a product called FTX-CM Equity, which was a tokenized version of US stocks. This product claimed to allow 24/7 on-chain trading and even provided a seemingly reliable promise of "redeemable for real stocks at any time."
However, when FTX collapsed in November 2022, people were shocked to find that these seemingly legitimate, redeemable tokens could not even provide a complete custody certificate. The 'on-chain US stocks' held by investors instantly turned into 'digital shells' that could not be exchanged for real stocks at all. In just one night, countless investors' on-chain assets disappeared into thin air.
Ironically, FTX's initial promotional materials boldly stated 'compliant custody' and 'transparent settlement.' It's like you excitedly bought a luxurious villa only to find out that the name on the property certificate isn't yours at all.
The case of FTX is not an isolated one. The currently popular tokenized US stock platform xStocks is also caught in a similar trust crisis.
By the end of 2024, the tokenization of US stocks became a hot trend, with crypto trading platforms like Kraken and Bybit choosing xStocks' infrastructure to issue tokenized products that include popular stocks like Apple (AAPL) and Tesla (TSLA).
However, the dark history of xStocks raises concerns. In June 2024, xStocks was exposed by the media: its early team members had participated in the notorious DAOstack project, which had faced widespread community skepticism due to opaque governance token distribution and the founding team's 'soft rug' (soft exit).
I am not saying that xStocks will necessarily follow in the footsteps of FTX, but the key question remains: what makes you trust it?
Centralized institutions inherently have trust gaps.
History tells us: unregulated centralized institutions find it hard to resist the temptation to 'do evil.' The trustworthiness of Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange does not come from their inherent nobility, but from the SEC's strict, almost harsh regulations, quarterly financial audits, and frequent and public asset reserve verifications, which leave these centralized platforms 'no opportunity to do evil.'
However, the special nature of tokenized US stocks means that they cannot be fully decentralized—on-chain tokens must correspond to stocks or rights in the real world. Therefore, this model inevitably relies on centralized institutions to complete key processes like asset custody, clearing, and redemption.
Since we cannot escape centralization, what we can do is build a sufficiently transparent, strongly regulated, and verifiable trust system to ensure custodians cannot act arbitrarily or disappear without a trace. This trust-auditable model is precisely the path Dinari is attempting.
In June of this year, the San Francisco-based company Dinari became the first US stock tokenization platform in history to obtain a broker-dealer license. Obtaining this license means that Dinari must not only strictly adhere to SEC trading rules (such as SEC Rule 15c3-3 asset custody and isolation requirements) but also undergo public third-party financial audits and asset reserve verifications annually.
Dinari CEO Gabriel Otte clearly stated that the company's upcoming tokenization of US stocks will be conducted entirely through 'regulated intermediaries + real-time blockchain settlement,' with asset custody and audit reports being fully transparent. Additionally, Dinari will interface with traditional financial platforms like Coinbase, Robinhood, and Cash App through APIs, rapidly spreading the SEC-reviewed legal compliance model in a white-label manner.
Almost simultaneously, crypto giant Coinbase is also actively promoting similar business implementations and has formally submitted a compliance license application for stock tokenization services to the SEC. Coinbase's CLO Paul Grewal publicly stated, "The future of tokenization must be driven by regulation, not by technology. Only in this way can on-chain US stocks truly earn the trust of investors."
The actions of Dinari and Coinbase send a clear signal: the true competition in US stock tokenization is not about who has the more advanced blockchain technology, but about who has more transparent and stricter compliance regulations.
After all, the issue of centralized risk is not something blockchain can solve. Only a regulatory framework that is strong enough to be respected can offer the ultimate answer.
Conclusion: Tokenization of US stocks is not about 'moving on-chain,' but about 'planting in the heart.'
In this era where capital and code are aligned, regulation and protocols are quietly merging. The tokenization of US stocks is not just an evolution of asset forms but an expedition of the trust system.
This expedition requires no fleet, relies not on force, but uses code as a vessel and institutions as sails, etching 'verifiable transparency,' 'executable rules,' and 'inheritable trust' into the on-chain world.
What we are witnessing is not a simple 'on-chain' but a silent institutional expansion—American financial logic, with governance as its banner and compliance as its justification, is sowing digital estates on the borderless land of DeFi.
Here, the SEC's numbering is transformed into consensus instructions in smart contracts, KYC processes are embedded in wallet signature permissions, and the trust that once belonged solely to Wall Street can now take root in any decentralized wallet.
This is the true face of tokenized US stocks:
It is not about turning stocks into code but transforming institutions into consensus, forging trust into liquidity, and compressing financial governance into a series of portable civilizational modules.
When the control of assets is no longer determined by brokers but by code arbitration; when the boundaries of trust are no longer national borders but the thickness of compliance standards—
We can finally say:
Tokenization of US stocks is not the end but the prologue to a global financial restructuring, a silent expansion of 'code civilization.'