Tokenised Stocks Surge 842% as International Investors Turn to Blockchain for US Equities

Tokenised stocks have emerged as the fastest-growing segment of hybrid finance, with market capitalisation reaching $3.91 billion by the end of the third quarter of 2026. This 842% year-on-year surge is driven primarily by international investors using blockchain infrastructure to bypass traditional brokerage hurdles and gain exposure to US-registered equities and ETFs.

What was announced

The Q3 2026 Hybrid Finance Report, produced by CoinShares in collaboration with onchain data platform Token Terminal, highlights a massive acceleration in the convergence of traditional and digital asset finance. The market for tokenised stocks, which stood at just $17.7 million at the end of 2024, surpassed the $100 million mark in August 2025 and crossed $1 billion in March 2026. The current $3.91 billion valuation represents a 98% increase in the third quarter of 2026 alone.

This growth significantly outpaces other tokenised asset classes. Over the same twelve-month period, tokenised commodities grew by 267%, tokenised funds by 97%, and stablecoins by 4%. Adoption metrics show a similar trajectory; onchain holder positions reached 4.88 million by September 2026, an 8.5-fold increase since June. Monthly trading volume on decentralised exchanges for these assets hit $22.8 billion in September 2026, compared to just $86.9 million in the same month the previous year.

The data suggests these tokens are serving a specific geographic demand. While 87.2% of the tokenised stock market cap tracks US-registered shares and ETFs, 85.4% of the supply is issued under terms that explicitly exclude US persons. Issuance is concentrated in jurisdictions including Jersey, the British Virgin Islands, and the UAE. The report notes that because most tokens are backed by shares held by US broker-dealers, this foreign capital remains within the US financial system. However, the rise of unbacked onchain derivatives, such as perpetual futures on US stocks which currently carry $1.51 billion of open interest on Trade.xyz, presents a competitive alternative to backed tokens.

"For years we have described hybrid finance as the point where traditional markets and blockchain infrastructure stop running in parallel and start running on the same rails. Tokenised stocks are that convergence happening in real time. What this report makes clear is who is buying and why: investors outside the United States who want US equities and are now reaching them through blockchain rather than through a local broker. That is a new investor base for American companies, and the capital it brings ends up in the US market. The policy question for every jurisdiction is no longer whether tokenisation will happen, but whether it happens with their own listed shares or someone else's."

Jean-Marie Mognetti, CoinShares CEO, President and Co-Founder.

The companies involved

CoinShares PLC is a leading global asset manager specialising in digital assets, headquartered in Jersey, Channel Islands. Listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm (CSHR), the firm has established itself as a major bridge between traditional institutional finance and the digital asset ecosystem. The company manages a wide range of financial products, including exchange-traded products (ETPs) and broader investment strategies designed to provide exposure to the crypto-asset class. CoinShares has historically focused on expanding the accessibility of digital assets through regulated financial instruments, positioning itself at the forefront of the "hybrid finance" movement where blockchain technology is integrated into traditional market structures.

Token Terminal is an onchain data platform that provides financial metrics and analytics for blockchains and decentralised applications. By aggregating data directly from various networks, the platform allows investors and analysts to evaluate the performance of digital assets using traditional financial frameworks. The collaboration between CoinShares and Token Terminal for the Hybrid Finance Report combines institutional asset management expertise with granular, real-time blockchain data to track the migration of traditional securities onto distributed ledgers.

What FF News has reported before

FF News has followed CoinShares’ expansion into institutional-grade digital asset products and its efforts to integrate blockchain technology with traditional investment vehicles. In October 2026, we covered how CoinShares Launches OnChain Strategies with Safe and Railnet to Unlock Institutional Stablecoin Yield, marking a significant move into decentralised infrastructure. This followed the firm's 2025 efforts to capture the US market through the launch of "The Advisor Series", aimed at wealth managers. The company has also been aggressive in the ETP sector, having recently introduced a CoinShares ETF offering access to Altcoins and a SEI ETP with Zero Management Fees and 2% Staking Yield in mid-2025.

What this means

The explosive growth of tokenised stocks signals a shift in global capital flows that traditional brokerages can no longer ignore. For investors in emerging markets, blockchain is moving from a speculative tool to a primary utility for accessing the world’s most liquid equity markets. This puts immense pressure on local brokers who rely on high fees and restrictive access models. Furthermore, the data presents a dilemma for US regulators: by restricting domestic access to tokenised versions of their own stocks, they risk driving the market toward unbacked synthetic derivatives. The industry is moving toward a reality where the underlying infrastructure of a trade matters less to the investor than the ease of access and settlement speed.