Nasdaq Chair and Chief Executive Adena Friedman said converting traditional financial instruments into digital tokens could free tens of billions of dollars currently locked up as collateral across global markets. She made the remarks during an interview at the TOKEN2049 conference in Singapore on October 8.

Friedman identified U.S. Treasury securities, equities and money market funds as assets well suited for blockchain representation. Tokenizing those instruments together with the flow of money, she said, would allow financial institutions to move collateral more efficiently between counterparties.

Banks and trading firms routinely pledge Treasuries, shares and money-market instruments to support trades, loans and other obligations. Under today’s infrastructure, transferring that collateral often requires multiple custodians, clearing systems and settlement steps. Friedman described the potential capital release as an estimate of efficiency gains rather than funds already unlocked.

Growing Institutional Interest

Friedman noted that interest among traditional financial institutions has risen over the past year. She linked part of the momentum to the passage of the GENIUS Act, which created a federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins. In her view, tokenized money could give institutions a practical means of settling transactions involving tokenized securities.

The discussion extends beyond cryptocurrency markets to the instruments that banks, funds and other institutional investors already hold. Friedman said retail investors have long sought access to markets outside conventional trading hours and described individual investors as roughly a decade ahead of institutions in their expectations for continuous trading.

Nasdaq Advances Tokenized Equity Plans

Nasdaq has moved to build supporting infrastructure through its partnership with Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken. On September 10 the exchange’s investment arm agreed to invest $100 million in Payward, expanding a collaboration first outlined earlier in the year. The companies plan to introduce Nasdaq Equity Tokens in the second quarter of 2027.

The proposed system aims to connect regulated stock markets with blockchain networks while preserving shareholder rights and market transparency. It includes trading infrastructure, blockchain settlement and surveillance technology. Nasdaq previously sought regulatory permission to facilitate tokenized securities trading on its exchange, and a temporary SEC framework has created a pathway for certain tokenized U.S. stocks to trade through approved venues.

Recent Market Developments

On the same day as Friedman’s interview, Securitize launched blockchain-based representations of 12 U.S. stocks through its regulated brokerage platform. The initial group included shares linked to Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Alphabet, Tesla, Amazon and other publicly traded companies. The tokens operate on Solana and are available to eligible investors in the United States, the European Union and other permitted markets. Each token is backed by an underlying share held in custody, structured as security entitlements that provide economic benefits while ownership records remain under the company’s brokerage and custody arrangements.

Trading is currently available 24 hours a day, five days a week, with continuous seven-day trading planned for a later stage. Separately, a joint venture between cryptocurrency exchange OKX and Intercontinental Exchange has filed with the SEC seeking permission to operate a tokenized securities trading platform that would support activity outside conventional market hours.

Requirements for Continuous Markets

Friedman cautioned that expanding trading hours demands more than keeping an exchange’s matching engine running. Banks and brokers must monitor positions, calculate exposure and manage collateral in real time. Historically, firms have used market closures to update systems, reconcile transactions and perform risk checks. In an always-open environment those functions would need to operate continuously.

She identified artificial intelligence as an important tool for developing those capabilities. Nasdaq has introduced digital agents within its risk-management platform that currently make recommendations to institutions; Friedman expects such systems could eventually take more direct action once safeguards are in place. At the same time she stressed that liquidity remains a limiting factor.

Friedman added that institutions must ensure risk-management systems can operate continuously, stating that everything has to be real time all the time. The combination of clearer regulation, institutional interest and new market infrastructure is positioning tokenization as a practical tool for improving capital efficiency and extending trading access, subject to ongoing liquidity and operational constraints.