SEC unlocks $77 trillion US stock market for tokenized trading

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has introduced a five-year exemption allowing regulated US stocks to trade on blockchain-native venues. This move follows the Senate's failure to pass the CLARITY Act, a comprehensive digital-asset market-structure bill. SEC Chair Paul Atkins stated the agency is acting within its existing authority to facilitate on-chain trading. The framework establishes Tokenized Securities Venues (TSVs) that utilize permissioned automated market makers and liquidity pools, with temporary relief from certain exchange and dealer-registration requirements. The pilot program includes caps on symbols and volume, alongside transparency and trading-halt requirements, to allow the SEC to gather data for a future permanent framework.