Nasdaq ignites Wall Street transformation with bold SEC filing to bring tokenized securities into the U.S. equities markets, merging blockchain speed with institutional-grade safeguards.
Nasdaq Aims to Bridge Traditional Finance With Digital Asset Innovation
Nasdaq revealed on Sept. 8, 2025, that it has submitted a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to allow tokenized securities to trade on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Following the announcement, Nasdaq President Tal Cohen expanded on the proposal in a Linkedin post, underscoring the importance of combining blockchain-driven efficiencies with existing investor safeguards.
Cohen stated:
The approach will ensure tokenized securities trade as regular securities, safeguarding both investors’ rights and the systemic stability of our markets through tested, resilient infrastructure.
“It seeks to capture the benefits of the technology while ensuring it matures in a way that best serves investors, issuers, and other stakeholders across global capital markets,” the executive added. He explained that intermediaries such as clearing houses and custodians will continue to play critical roles in risk management and accountability, while blockchain could enable faster settlement, modernized proxy voting, and programmable corporate actions.
The president of Nasdaq also highlighted the responsibility of embedding governance from the outset: “The challenge – and the responsibility – is to ensure that this transformation is grounded in investor-first principles.” He continued:
Today’s filing marks an early step in Nasdaq’s journey to bring digital assets technology into the U.S. equities markets and to take a responsible approach to bridge the gap between the digital-asset and traditional-asset worlds.
Drawing from lessons in decentralized finance, Cohen pointed out that innovation must be carefully structured to avoid the risks of weak oversight. Nasdaq’s approach, he indicated, is to strengthen U.S. capital markets by ensuring tokenization advances in a way that builds on trust and resilience.
