The head of the SEC's cryptocurrency working group warns: Regardless of tokenization, assets are still securities.

CN
16 hours ago

Source: cryptoslate

Translation: Blockchain Knight

Hester Peirce, head of the SEC's cryptocurrency task force, stated that placing securities on the blockchain "does not have the magical ability to change the nature of the underlying asset."

In a statement released on July 9, Peirce emphasized that tokenized stocks, notes, or rights "are still securities," and that issuers, intermediaries, and traders must comply with existing federal laws when creating, selling, or transferring these securities.

Peirce's announcement noted that tokenization can be achieved in two ways: first, the issuer mints a blockchain version of its own stock; second, a custodian wraps third-party securities and issues receipts.

She warned that the second model introduces counterparty risk, as token holders rely on the custodian's solvency and control over the underlying stock.

Peirce urged distributors to consult the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance's "staff statements" to understand disclosure obligations and to meet with SEC staff early if seeking customized exemptions.

She also pointed out that relevant rules may classify certain forms of tokens as "security receipts," and if lacking beneficial ownership, classify them as "security-based swaps" that prohibit over-the-counter retail trading.

Peirce wrote, "The on-chain and off-chain versions of these instruments are subject to the same legal requirements."

As Peirce made these remarks, the trading volume of tokenized stocks was continuously rising. As of July 4, the total market capitalization of stock tokens issued under the xStocks framework on Backed Finance, based on Solana, reached $48.53 million.

A dashboard snapshot from data provider RWA.xyz showed that on July 6, this total had surpassed the $50 million mark.

Additionally, xStocks is expanding to other platforms. BNB Chain announced that it will collaborate with Kraken and Backed to list stock tokens of companies like Apple and Tesla as BEP-20 assets, providing users with a 24-hour trading channel and DeFi composability.

Market participants largely welcomed the regulatory clarity. Adam Levi, co-founder of Backed Finance, stated in a release that the company "designed xStocks to mirror traditional stock custody methods to maintain clarity in regulatory treatment."

Kraken added that the DeFi integration on BNB Chain will allow users to use tokenized stocks as collateral without changing their security attributes.

Furthermore, Bitget integrated xStocks into its on-chain platform on July 9, enabling users to trade these tokens directly from their spot accounts without the need for a separate wallet.

Peirce concluded by stating that the SEC is open to modernization, saying that the commission "is always ready to work with market participants to develop appropriate exemptions and update rules when technology exposes gaps in the regulations."

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