FINRA Clears Securitize to Underwrite Tokenized IPOs

FINRA approved Securitize to operate as a broker-dealer with authority to underwrite tokenized initial public offerings and secondary offerings and to custody tokenized securities through its Securitize Markets unit.

The regulator granted the permissions through its Continuing Membership Application process, expanding Securitize’s broker-dealer activities to include underwriting and selling-group functions for blockchain-based equity offerings.

The custody approval permits Securitize to hold tokenized shares inside its broker-dealer structure, which the firm says will enable atomic swaps between tokenized stocks and stablecoins. Securitize described atomic settlement as a single onchain exchange that replaces multi-step transfers across separate accounts and intermediaries.

Brett Redfearn, Securitize president, called the underwriting and selling-group approvals a material enhancement to the company’s IPO support. “The underwriting and selling group approvals greatly enhance our capabilities to assist tokenizing securities during the IPO process. The case for new and existing publicly traded companies to tokenize stock continues to get more compelling,” he said.

Carlos Domingo, chief executive, said bringing custody into the broker-dealer will let Securitize settle securities and cash equivalents within its alternative trading system, reducing fragmented processes and applying blockchain settlement mechanics under a regulated framework.

Securitize’s Stocks on Securitize product issues tokenized versions of regulated shares that are recorded on an issuer’s cap table and represent shareholder rights such as dividends and proxy voting. The firm has worked with companies including Currenc Group Inc., which used tokenization to enable 24/7 trading and fractional ownership.

The company has a partnership with transfer agent Computershare to enable public companies to issue tokenized shares alongside traditional certificates. Securitize is also helping to develop a 24/7 tokenized securities platform for the New York Stock Exchange.

Securitize says it is the first firm to receive FINRA approval to custody tokenized securities within a regular broker-dealer. FINRA is a non-governmental self-regulatory organization that oversees brokers and dealers and uses the CMA process to review firms that add new business capabilities.

Securitize is pursuing a public listing through a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners II and expects the transaction to close in the first half of 2026, after which it would list on Nasdaq under the CEPT ticker.

Market interest in tokenized assets has increased, and some analysts project that tokenized securities and other tokenized asset classes could expand into the trillions of dollars over the next decade.