Nasdaq CEO: tokenized collateral could unlock billions

For digital assets, the trend is more about structural backing than a direct price trigger: as institutions settle transactions on blockchain, the utility of public networks expands, but which chains ultimately benefit depends on who wins adoption. Ethereum’s dominance in tokenized assets gives it the highest upside and the greatest risk if issuers migrate toward competing networks or private ledgers. Investors monitoring on-chain data should pay attention to market share rather than treating headlines as immediate demand signals for ETH. Nasdaq’s planned extended-hours debut in December will also show whether conventional equities can handle overnight risk in the manner crypto already does.

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Friedman is promoting the tokenization vision, but in the near term the focus is on a limited settlement test and a 23-hour trading window, not fully continuous markets, nor a guaranteed boost for Ethereum.

Summary:

• Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman stated at TOKEN2049 that tokenizing collateral assets and cash could unlock tens of billions of dollars in capital
• The SEC approved a Nasdaq test in March that enables Russell 1000 stocks and major index ETFs to settle as blockchain tokens alongside ordinary shares on the same order book
• Friedman noted that 24/7 trading would require real-time risk and collateral handling, with Nasdaq integrating AI agents into its risk system
• Nasdaq aims to begin 23-hour, five-day equity trading on 6 December
• Ethereum accounts for about 45% of roughly $38 billion in tokenized real-world assets, though its portion has been declining
• Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi said international firms are looking at tokenization as a way to access US capital markets

Tokenization could free up tens of billions of dollars currently locked as collateral across the financial system, Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman said at the TOKEN2049 conference in Singapore, in remarks reported by CNBC. Her view is that if Treasurys, equities, money market funds and cash operate as digital tokens, collateral can be transferred between institutions much faster than under current systems. She did not explain how the figure was derived, so it is best viewed as her own projection.

The remarks carry extra weight because Nasdaq is already developing elements of this system. In March, the US Securities and Exchange Commission cleared a Nasdaq pilot that allows Russell 1000 stocks and major index ETFs to be settled as blockchain tokens. A tokenized share trades on the same order book, at the same price, and under the same ticker as the conventional share. The sole difference is the settlement location: on a blockchain instead of through the Depository Trust Company’s legacy book-entry system. Separately, the DTCC is conducting a three-year pilot beginning with tokenized Treasury entitlements before expanding to equities, a significant move because Treasurys are the central collateral asset in Friedman’s argument.

Friedman attributed the rise in institutional interest to last year’s Genius Act, which established a US framework for stablecoins, since tokenized money enables capital flows on the same infrastructure.

The more difficult challenge, she said, is operating markets without interruption. Banks have traditionally used closed hours to refresh systems and handle risk, while continuous trading would push collateral and risk management into real time. Nasdaq has launched AI agents in its risk platform that currently offer suggestions and could eventually take direct action. Its initial step is less ambitious than 24/7 operations: it is aiming for a 23-hour, five-day equity session starting 6 December. When that plan was unveiled in April, only about 2% of Nasdaq equity volume traded outside its existing extended hours, reinforcing Friedman’s own warning that not every asset is sufficiently liquid for round-the-clock trading.

For Ethereum, the connection is genuine but indirect. Ethereum hosts the largest share of tokenized real-world assets, roughly 45% of about $38 billion as of early August, according to rwa.xyz data cited by Crypto Briefing, though that percentage has been eroding as other networks expand. Nasdaq’s pilot allows buyers to select the blockchain, so broader tokenization does not automatically translate into greater demand for ETH. Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi added that companies outside the US are exploring tokenization as a pathway to American capital markets.

The upcoming milestones are the 23-hour launch in December, the first token-settled trades under Nasdaq’s pilot, and whether Ethereum can maintain its lead as tokenized collateral begins to grow at scale.