SEC Blurs Securities Boundaries with Stock Tokenization

The United States is leading the capital market by promoting stock tokenization. Countries that do not adopt it are likely to be left behind, inevitably following the U.S.

It is anticipated to reduce financial transaction costs by eliminating the complex steps in the existing collateral and trust settlement systems.

Especially in a future AI-centric economy, the role of stablecoins in supporting AI-to-AI settlements may expand significantly.

Amidst these changes, Bitcoin's scarcity as digital gold is recognized, increasing its value, but many altcoins without real substance are predicted to disappear.

Securities represent a 'promise' between investors and issuers regarding dividends, voting rights, etc. In the past, they existed as paper certificates but have evolved into electronic records with technological advancements.

Currently, Korea uses a T+1 settlement system, and the U.S. uses T+3, causing a time lag between trading and settlement, which stems from systems incapable of real-time delivery versus payment (DVP).

When stocks are recorded on a blockchain, immediate settlement becomes possible without intermediaries, significantly reducing transaction risks.

However, financial authorities are expected to adopt only strictly verified blockchains if stock tokenization is introduced in the future.

This goes beyond mere electronic securities, representing the fundamental digitization of assets by placing real assets on the blockchain.

When settling export payments between countries using the traditional financial network, it takes 2-3 days through multiple intermediary banks. In contrast, using stablecoins allows for reduced fees and instant remittances.

When settling export payments between countries, using the traditional financial network involves several intermediary banks, taking 2-3 days and incurring high fees.

However, utilizing blockchain-based stablecoins enables instant remittances and significantly reduced fees, thereby increasing efficiency.

The digital asset system is expected to undergo significant changes starting in 2027. The introduction of blockchain is likely to bring about a major change: 24-hour trading of U.S. stocks.

This transition to a digital asset system is expected to accelerate further from 2027, bringing significant changes to the financial market.

Due to regulatory uncertainty, issuers face significant risks navigating between the SEC and CFTC jurisdictions. The Genius Act addresses stablecoin issuers and requirements, while the Clarity Act covers the circulation and trading rules of issued assets.

These bills aim to resolve regulatory uncertainties in the stablecoin market and establish an institutional framework for stable growth.

Currently, issuers face substantial regulatory risks between the jurisdictions of the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), making a clear regulatory framework urgently needed.

This will create an environment where stablecoins can be issued based on major main blockchains such as Ethereum, Tron, and Solana.

It is analyzed that if stablecoins become mainstream, issuers will choose network ecosystems with a large number of users.

Large, already active networks like Ethereum provide overwhelming user numbers, offering high scalability and accessibility, thereby strengthening stablecoin competitiveness.

Stablecoins, as programmable money, are expected to be a key means for smoothly executing settlements between AI agents without human intervention.

In the future, the digital asset market will be reorganized around large blockchains with proven use cases and stability, and other coins are likely to lose competitiveness.

Most of the coins currently in the market that rely solely on simple narratives without practical use cases are highly likely to disappear.

Conversely, Real World Asset (RWA) tokens, which are collateralized by real assets generating cash flow, are gaining attention, reflecting a trend that prioritizes assets' actual value creation ability.

Future financial applications will be evaluated based on how much cash flow an asset generates, rather than whether it uses blockchain technology.

It is pointed out that 99.99% of the coins currently in circulation rely solely on narratives without real engineers or clear substance, posing a high risk of disappearance.

As an alternative, Real World Assets (RWA) tokenization, which collateralizes real assets with cash flow, is rapidly emerging.

In the U.S., a legal foundation for RWA has already been established, creating an environment where the value of real assets can be evaluated and traded on the blockchain.

Various financial assets such as stocks, bonds, and coins will be integrated and offered through a single app or platform, with the asset's actual cash-generating ability becoming the key criterion for investment decisions rather than its technological background.