- SEC lets DTCC tokenize traditional assets on approved blockchains for three years.
- Tokenized securities keep full legal rights, protections and ownership claims like originals.
- Industry leaders say approval shows U.S. markets are moving steadily toward blockchain use.
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the core settlement and custody infrastructure for U.S. financial markets, has received a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission No-Action Letter allowing it to offer a controlled tokenization service for real-world assets held at its subsidiary, The Depository Trust Company (DTC).
The approval gives DTCC a three-year window to operate the service under federal securities rules. The company plans to begin rolling out the system in the second half of 2026.
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A Three-Year Pilot for Digital Securities
Under the authorization, DTC will be able to issue tokenized versions of traditional securities on pre-approved blockchains. The digital representations will carry the same legal rights, investor protections and ownership claims as the original assets.
Operational rollout is scheduled for the second half of 2026, giving the market infrastructure giant time to integrate blockchain rails with legacy systems.
Legal Equivalence: The ‘Digital Twin’ Model
Under the new framework, DTC is authorized to mint tokenized versions of traditional securities on pre-approved blockchain networks. Crucially, these digital representations will act as digital twins, carrying the exact same legal rights, investor protections, and ownership claims as the underlying assets held in DTC custody.
The scope focuses on liquidity. The SEC’s approval applies to a select group of highly liquid assets including the Russell 1000 equity index, U.S. Treasuries, and major index-tracking ETFs.
DTCC said the new environment will maintain the same operational resilience and legal safeguards that underpin today’s market structure.
Industry Reaction: ‘Backbone of Markets’ Shifts
In recent months, the SEC has given two no-action letters to crypto projects working on decentralized physical infrastructure. Several industry figures described the SEC’s approval as a turning point for U.S. market infrastructure.
Matthew Sigel of VanEck called the decision “the SEC giving the $100 trillion backbone of U.S. markets approval to tokenize stocks on blockchain.”
He said investors may eventually withdraw tokenized Russell 1000 equities to personal wallets around the clock.David Wals, a contributor to the Ethereum Foundation, said that DTCC custodies more than $100 trillion in assets and processed $3.7 quadrillion in transactions in 2024. He said the approval shows that “the backbone of U.S. capital markets just said blockchain is the future of finance.”
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