Nasdaq CEO: Tokenization Could Unlock Tens of Billions in Collateral
Adena Friedman told TOKEN2049 that moving assets onto blockchains could free trapped capital, as Nasdaq advances a live SEC-approved settlement pilot.
Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman told attendees at the TOKEN2049 conference in Singapore on Thursday that tokenizing collateral assets — including Treasurys, equities, money market funds, and cash — could release tens of billions of dollars currently locked inside the financial system's traditional settlement machinery. Speaking to CNBC, Friedman argued that digital tokens allow collateral to move between institutions far faster than today's infrastructure permits, though she did not detail how the figure was calculated.
The comments land with added credibility because Nasdaq is already executing on the concept. The SEC approved a Nasdaq pilot in March that allows Russell 1000 stocks and major index ETFs to settle as blockchain tokens on the same order book, at the same price and under the same ticker as ordinary shares — with the sole distinction being settlement on a blockchain rather than through the Depository Trust Company's conventional book-entry system. The DTCC is simultaneously running a three-year pilot beginning with tokenized Treasury entitlements before moving into equities, reinforcing Friedman's broader collateral argument.
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Friedman also credited the Genius Act — last year's US stablecoin framework legislation — with accelerating institutional interest, reasoning that tokenized money is the essential rail over which tokenized collateral must travel. Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi added at the same event that overseas companies are actively exploring tokenization as a route to access US capital markets.
The path to truly continuous trading remains steep, Friedman acknowledged. Banks have historically used overnight closures to reconcile systems and manage risk exposure; around-the-clock markets would demand real-time collateral and risk management at a scale traditional infrastructure cannot support. Nasdaq has deployed AI agents inside its risk platform that currently issue recommendations and are designed to act autonomously over time. As a near-term milestone, the exchange is targeting December 6 for a 23-hour, five-day trading session — a meaningful step, but well short of a full 24/7 market. Ethereum, which holds roughly 45% of approximately $38 billion in tokenized real-world assets, stands as the primary beneficiary if public blockchain settlement scales — though its share has been gradually eroding to rival chains and permissioned ledgers.
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