Hester Peirce issued warnings about exaggerated expectations of the SEC’s proposed exemption, noting that it applies to the actual securities that are tokenized, not just financial instruments whose value follows stock market movements.
In a May 21 post on
This comes amid anticipation by cryptocurrency companies and traditional exchanges regarding what could be one of the most anticipated rulings by the SEC this year.
According to Reuters, the exemption could be issued as early as this week and would create a regulated path for tokenized issues of publicly traded US stocks to trade on blockchain-based platforms.
Peirce also distinguished token shares backed by real stock ownership and synthetic instruments that provide only price exposure without voting rights or ownership claims.
A January 2026 joint staff statement from the SEC’s Divisions of Corporate Finance, Investment Management, and Trading and Markets separated token-backed securities from synthetic third-party products, according to an analysis by Morgan Lewis.
At an ETHDenver conference in February, Pierce hinted that the exemption would not radically change securities regulations immediately.
according to CryptopolitanIt stated that both cryptocurrency enthusiasts and the traditional financial sector were exaggerating its impact.
Wall Street isn’t waiting for the SEC to publish the rule
According to The Block, eligible companies will be able to list and transact token shares under a lower regulatory burden for approximately three years with limits on transaction volume and participation as part of the proposed model.
After that period, companies will need to either demonstrate enough decentralization to fall under the CFTC’s jurisdiction or register fully with the SEC.
Major market infrastructure providers are already preparing for token settlement systems.
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation received a no-action letter from the SEC’s Division of Trading and Markets in December 2025, and plans to launch token asset trading in a production environment in July, with a broader rollout expected in October, according to the SEC’s December 2025 no-action letter.
Nasdaq is developing a platform for issuing shares based on blockchain technology. Meanwhile, the NYSE has proposed Rule 7.50, which would support around-the-clock trading and settlement of tokenized stocks and ETFs, according to an NYSE filing.
Companies operating in the field of cryptocurrencies are also expanding aggressively. Kraken said trading activity related to its xStock offering exceeded $25 billion, while Robinhood reported more than 4 million trades during the first week of activity on the real assets blockchain platform, according to The Block.
In April 2026, the tokenized real assets market reached $27 billion, an increase of 85% from the previous year based on rwa.xyz statistics. Institutional investors contributed to the majority of this increase.
Pierce draws the lines that Atkins left open
Paul Atkins, who launched the Crypto project in July 2025, said during his remarks at the Economic Club of Washington on April 21 that the SEC was “on the cusp” of triggering the exemption.
If the proposal is released this week, market participants globally will get the clearest signal yet of how US regulators intend to connect traditional securities markets to blockchain infrastructure.
Pierce’s recent statements indicate that the SEC is seeking a step-by-step change in financial regulation rather than a radical change.
