The market capitalization of tokenized stocks has reached a record $3.9 billion, according to figures published on October 12 by the analytics platform Token Terminal and reported by Journal du Coin. Three networks share most of this market: BNB Chain comes first, ahead of Ethereum and Solana. Before interpreting this record, it is worth clarifying what it measures, and what it does not.

What the published figures say

According to Token Terminal data as of October 12, the breakdown by network is as follows:

  • BNB Chain: about $1.2 billion;
  • Ethereum: $841.9 million;
  • Solana: $741.7 million.

Together, these three networks represent nearly $2.8 billion, or about 71% of the announced total. Journal du Coin rounds this share to “about 70% of the market tracked by the platform”. The nuance matters: this is the scope covered by Token Terminal, not an exhaustive inventory of all existing tokenized securities.

The method is also worth recalling. Market capitalization here corresponds to the value of the tokens in circulation tracked by the platform. It corresponds neither to trading volume nor to the amount of new investment made over the period. A record capitalization can therefore reflect both new issuances and changes in the price of the underlying stocks; the source does not make it possible to distinguish the share of each of these effects.

Nor does the source provide a comparison with the capitalization of traditional equity markets. We will therefore refrain from putting forward a ratio, simply noting that the article itself describes this sector as an “emerging market”.

What is a tokenized stock?

Tokenization consists of representing financial securities, or the economic rights associated with them, on a blockchain. In principle, a token backed by a stock refers to an underlying security held off the blockchain by an issuer or a custodian.

The key point is that the terms vary depending on the issuer. As the source stresses, holding a token does not systematically confer the same rights as owning a stock directly, particularly with regard to voting rights.

The article cites the example of Coinbase's products. Each token represents a certificate issued by a dedicated entity. The underlying stocks are held with the broker Alpaca, in segregated accounts in the issuer's name. Dividends are not paid directly to holders: they are reinvested, after deductions and fees. The holder is therefore exposed to an instrument distinct from the stock itself, whose terms should be read.

Diversifying uses

According to Journal du Coin, the growth is accompanied by new uses. Since September 25, seven US stocks tokenized by Coinbase (Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla) can be deposited in an Aave V4 market deployed on the Base network. Eligible users outside the United States can post them as collateral to borrow USDC, a stablecoin. At launch, these tokens cannot themselves be borrowed, and USDC is the only asset available to borrow in this space, called Equities Hub.

The Ethena protocol, for its part, has extended the strategy that backs its synthetic dollar USDe to tokenized stocks. It pairs bStocks on Binance with short positions on equity perpetual contracts, in order to limit exposure to price movements while seeking income linked to derivatives funding.

The risks flagged

The source itself tempers the enthusiasm. The hedging used by Ethena does not eliminate liquidity, counterparty or divergence risks between instruments. More broadly, the article considers that, to scale up, players will need to attract lasting liquidity and offer investors clear rights, reliable custody and means of redress.

Several points of caution follow from these elements:

  • counterparty risk, linked to the token issuer and to the custodian of the underlying stocks;
  • liquidity, which has yet to be built in a market described as emerging;
  • access, which depends on the country of residence: the Aave offering described by the source is, for example, reserved for eligible users outside the United States;
  • the holder's rights, which are not necessarily identical to those of a direct shareholder.

What about Switzerland?

The source article does not address the Swiss situation. It mentions neither the Swiss legal framework applicable to distributed ledgers, nor infrastructures or issuers based in Switzerland, nor their possible share of the $3.9 billion tracked. In the absence of data in the source, we do not comment on Switzerland's place in this ranking.

This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

Sources

  • Journal du Coin: “Actions tokenisées : Record à 3,9 milliards de dollars, BNB Chain devant Ethereum et Solana”, published on October 13, based on Token Terminal data from October 12.