Overview
- The SEC issued the Innovation Exemption on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026, giving Tokenized Securities Venues a five‑year, conditional path to operate without registering as national exchanges.
- Qualified tokens must represent real ownership of listed U.S. shares and convey the same rights as conventional stock holders, including dividends, voting, and corporate‑action entitlements, while synthetic or derivative products are barred.
- The order requires public, auditable smart contracts on public permissionless ledgers, forces TSVs to halt token trading when the underlying exchange halts, and mandates regular public disclosure of trade data.
- Each venue faces strict limits to contain risk: the most liquid names are capped at 75 symbols and 0.25% of prior‑month average daily volume per venue, a second tier allows 250 symbols at 2.5% volume, and certain liquidity providers get narrow relief from dealer rules.
- The SEC is seeking public comment and held a roundtable on expanding trading hours, and major crypto platforms have signaled they will pursue U.S. tokenized stock offerings under the pilot as the agency gathers data to shape permanent rules.