Computershare, the world's largest transfer agent, is partnering with Securitize to enable thousands of Wall Street firms to issue capital on-chain. This collaboration will allow companies to distribute digital representations of their stock, known as Issuer-Sponsored Tokens (ISTs), on the blockchain.
Under the agreement, shareholders will receive ISTs that exist alongside traditionally held securities. Computershare, which serves as the transfer agent for 58% of S&P 500 companies including Apple, Tesla, and Nvidia, will facilitate this shift. Securitize has experience tokenizing assets across multiple blockchains and will scale ISTs to meet issuer demand.
These tokens retain the same rights and economic benefits as traditional shares and allow investors to borrow against them on-chain. The partnership is a significant step in traditional finance's embrace of blockchain technology. Computershare's CEO of Issuer Services, North America, Ann Bowering, stated their focus is empowering U.S.-listed companies to issue tokenized equity with confidence.
Graham Ferguson, head of ecosystem at Securitize, indicated that 10,000 public companies in the U.S. could shift capital on-chain through this initiative. Securitize is a notable player in tokenization, having previously worked with BlackRock on its tokenized money market fund, BUIDL, valued at nearly $2.6 billion.