Overview
- The IMF’s Global Financial Stability Report finds clear investor demand for tokenized U.S. equities because they allow 24/7 trading and fractional purchases, with most trades taking place outside regular market hours and about 80% of trades for less than one share.
- Tokenized equities are still small and fragmented compared with traditional markets, with the broader tokenized real‑world asset market estimated at about $65 billion and tokenized equities around $2.3 billion.
- The IMF measured market quality and found tokenized stocks are significantly less liquid and roughly 1.5 times as volatile as the same shares on conventional venues.
- Overnight price moves in tokenized shares carry useful information for regular markets, with more than 85% of those moves reflected in conventional share prices within five minutes of U.S. market open.
- The report warns that automated margin calls, rapid collateral transfers and 24/7 trading could amplify a shock and calls for clear legal ownership rules, interoperable systems, accepted settlement assets and liquidity safeguards as adoption accelerates via new product launches and venue filings.