Brian Armstrong Says $126T Market Goes On-Chain as SEC Clears Nasdaq Tokens

For several years, access to US equities has depended on location, banks, and whether the systems let investors in at all. This has started to loosen a bit. Nasdaq just got the green light to bring tokenized stocks into the US markets, after the SEC approved a rule change. As per this shift, blockchain-based settlement can be carried out without changing how these shares are traded. The move is linked to the broader shift toward blockchain stock trading. But the focus is on Nasdaq tokenized stocks and the SEC’s decision. This reveals who can access US equities.

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Russell 1000 Stocks and S&P 500 ETFs Now Eligible for On-Chain Settlement

Stocks in the Russell 1000 and ETFs tracking the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 can now be traded in tokenized form. These can be done along with regular shares. There is no separate market or pricing mismatch. It should be noted that assets sit on the same order books, with identical execution priority, dividends, and voting rights.

According to reports, the change is expected to show up after the trade. This means settlement will now take place on blockchain rails instead of relying fully on traditional post-trade systems. Meanwhile, the Depository Trust Company continues to handle clearing. In short, trading stays the same, but the backend starts to evolve.

This is part of Nasdaq’s push towards blockchain settlement as exchanges are now looking for ways to modernize how markets operate. Similar efforts are already in process across the industry. Several platforms are trying to bring stock trading to blockchain.

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Brian Armstrong Pushes For Tokenization

In a recent interview, Coinbase’s CEO Brian Armstrong revealed how financial markets are gradually moving on-chain. Stablecoins brought the dollar to the blockchain networks. Now equities are starting to follow suit. He pointed out that around 4 billion adults globally are still “unbrokered.” They do not have access to investment markets like US stocks or major funds. Tokenization starts to change this by making these assets easier to access and move across the world.

Armstrong noted how the bigger shift is focused more on participation and not speed. The rise of tokenized equities in 2026 is aiding this shift. He previously shared a post about the same on X.

Freedom to invest should be a human right. People with the ability to invest out-earn those relying only on wages.

Very soon, tokenization will strip away a huge amount of unfairness from the system by increasing asset access worldwide.

— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) March 13, 2026

SEC’s approval of tokenized stocks does not change how markets function day to day. But it adds a new settlement option. This creates a direct link between blockchain rails and US equity markets for the very first time. But for a $126 trillion market, even a small shift like this can have a long-term impact.

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