If the whole world builds the future of asset ownership around American assets, while Americans themselves are left behind, it will be an absurd outcome.

Written by: Vlad Tenev, CEO of Robinhood

Translated by: Chopper, Foresight News

We are in the early stages of a global asset tokenization supercycle. Last year, I likened it to a freight train that cannot stop, which will ultimately reshape the entire financial system.

Since then, tokenization has officially entered the public eye and is no longer just a verbal discussion. Beyond the United States, Robinhood has been continuously launching products early on, expanding the boundaries of this new industry. Just over a month ago, at our event in London themed "The World is Flat," the Robinhood Chain mainnet officially launched, which is the first public blockchain designed specifically for real-world assets (RWA). Centered around stock tokens, it became the fastest EVM chain to achieve 100 million transactions in history. Users from over 120 countries globally can invest in more than 190 U.S. stocks through it, with these tokens backed 1:1 by the underlying stocks.

However, there is a clear gap here: stock tokens cannot be used in the U.S. domestic market at present.

In the U.S., the discussion around stock tokenization has split into two camps: one eagerly awaiting when tokenized stocks can be implemented in the domestic market; the other questioning the significance of this matter. In many overseas regions, ordinary users find it difficult to purchase U.S. stocks and other quality real-world assets, while the U.S. domestic market is different, with platforms like Robinhood already providing a large number of low-cost and convenient channels for investing in U.S. stocks.

The market also debates the product structure surrounding the tokenized stocks themselves. Currently, Robinhood's stock tokens are fully backed by the underlying securities, allowing users to obtain economic benefits of the corresponding assets on-chain, including dividend rights. This does not equate to directly holding the original stocks themselves, but if we only focus on this point, we overlook the core of innovation: for the first time, humanity can make quality financial assets into tokens that are transferable, programmable, and self-custodial, enabling 24/7 trading in an open financial ecosystem.

This is just one form of implementation for tokenization. As regulatory frameworks mature, the design of tokens will continue to iterate, and in the future, we will see tokenized equity that fully inherits all shareholder rights of traditional stocks.

Tokenization is the optimal path for modernizing the U.S. financial system, allowing more people to achieve asset ownership, and American domestic investors should also enjoy this dividend. Tokenization is not merely about moving stocks onto the blockchain but reconstructing the underlying infrastructure of asset ownership, allowing assets to flow as freely as information on the internet. For U.S. investors, this infrastructure will immediately bring three core advantages.

First, tokenization enables real-time clearing and settlement, enhancing market resilience.

The crisis of GameStop must not be repeated. In hindsight, the trading restrictions in the GameStop incident stemmed from traditional clearinghouse risk control rules, constrained by the T+2 settlement cycle. Our industry has already pushed the market from T+2 towards T+1 settlement. Even so, during the interval between trade completion and settlement finalization, brokers still need to front large amounts of cash to hedge risks.

On the blockchain, however, stock tokens can complete the entire process of trading, clearing, and asset transfer in real-time. Real-time settlement can greatly reduce systemic risks and market pressure, especially in times of extreme market volatility, where the effects are particularly pronounced.

Second, tokenization introduces inherent 24/7 trading capabilities.

The market today is globalized, and significant news often occurs during after-hours trading of U.S. stocks or on weekends when the market is closed. By the time trading opens on Monday, prices have often changed drastically. For decades, institutional investors have been able to address this type of risk with complex hedging tools, but ordinary individual investors do not have this capability. Therefore, 24/7 trading is not just about seizing opportunities; it is also a risk management tool.

Robinhood has already achieved 7×5 trading in the U.S. relying on traditional systems, and we will continue to innovate, moving towards an all-weather trading model. However, achieving this functionality by stitching together multiple exchanges and alternative trading systems is quite complex. But on a blockchain like Robinhood Chain, 24/7 trading and fractional share trading are intrinsic built-in capabilities.

We have witnessed its power on Robinhood Chain and other protocols: users outside the U.S. have already conducted millions of dollars in stock token trades over the weekend. The internet never sleeps, and neither should the market.

Third, tokenization gives users more control over their assets, forcing financial platforms to compete.

In the traditional financial world, transferring assets to another broker relies on the traditional ACAT transfer channel, which takes several days and provides a poor experience. Many investors hesitate to migrate because they fear their assets will be left in a state of delivery limbo, especially when market volatility occurs. Tokenization enables instant global asset transfers, whether between traditional brokers or into the DeFi world. Once friction is eliminated, the transferability of assets will compel platforms to compete on pricing and product innovation. Users can seek better product experiences, no longer locked into closed ecosystems.

Transferability is just one of the advantages of self-custody, allowing users to keep stock tokens in their own crypto wallets. Besides having stronger control, self-custody also unlocks more asset usage methods, such as using assets for lending or acting as collateral in DeFi. Currently, on Robinhood Chain, developers have already built several stock token applications that we never envisioned at the outset. As we refine the underlying components of RWA and provide developers with more tools, the prosperity of the on-chain economy will accelerate further.

However, to release these dividends in the U.S., relying solely on technology is far from enough. The century-old U.S. securities regulatory system has formed a complex set of rules based on outdated market structures and old technologies. Many of these rules were initially intended to protect investors and maintain market order, but in implementation, they have also reinforced traditional infrastructures that cannot keep pace with modern technological capabilities. Market participants have already begun migrating to blockchain systems, but policymakers need to complete the modernization of rules, embracing superior new infrastructures while retaining existing protective mechanisms, and action must be expedited. Other jurisdictions will not wait for the U.S. to catch up, and handling this correctly is significantly meaningful.

Tokenization of listed stocks is just the beginning. It can help build infrastructure, liquidity, and on-chain ecosystems, supporting a wider range of asset classes in the future. The next step is to address assets with high current barriers to entry and lack of liquidity, most typically private company equity. Technology cannot eliminate all barriers, such as the accredited investor system, which still prevents the vast majority of Americans from entering the primary market. However, enhancing the tokenization infrastructure for listed stocks can pave the way for broader investment access, increased liquidity, and the emergence of entirely new ownership models.

American investors should also enjoy the dividends of this innovation. After all, most of the tokenized assets are domestically held assets in the U.S., with significant innovations driven by American companies like Robinhood. If the whole world builds the future of asset ownership around American assets, while Americans themselves are excluded, it would be a very absurd outcome.