SEC’s Hester Peirce: Regulator Ready to Engage on Tokenization
SINGAPORE — U.S. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said Tuesday the agency is open to discussions with firms exploring tokenization, while acknowledging the regulatory challenges of aligning digital and traditional securities.
“We are willing to work with people who want to tokenize, and we encourage them to come talk to us,” Peirce said at the Digital Assets Summit in Singapore.
Tokenized securities represent ownership in assets such as equities or bonds through blockchain-based tokens, existing alongside conventional certificates or electronic records. According to Peirce, a central challenge lies in how these different versions of the same asset interact.
“Depending on how things are tokenized, it could mean very different things,” she said, calling for a nuanced approach to oversight.
Tokenization has emerged as one of the most practical applications of blockchain technology, increasingly adopted by financial institutions to boost efficiency and liquidity.
The sector’s on-chain market value stands at about $31 billion, with $714 million in tokenized equities, according to RWA.xyz. A McKinsey study projects tokenized assets could reach $2 trillion in market capitalization by 2030.
