Morgan Stanley delays tokenized stocks: What’s holding it back?
Morgan Stanley has pushed its expected timeline for supporting tokenized equities on its alternative trading system to the first quarter of 2027, moving beyond its earlier second-half 2026 target as the U.S. bank develops the infrastructure needed for blockchain-based securities trading.
- Morgan Stanley now targets early 2027 for tokenized equities, replacing its earlier late 2026 timetable.
- Amy Oldenburg said limited product availability and institutional demand continue affecting tokenized equity trading preparations.
- DTCC plans an October 2026 tokenization service launch after completing production transactions involving traditional securities.
- Morgan Stanley is developing proprietary wallet infrastructure and testing blockchain applications through its Digital Asset Lab.
- Oldenburg predicted tokenized real world assets could reach between $3 trillion and $10 trillion by 2030.
According to Amy Oldenburg, Morgan Stanley’s head of digital asset strategy, the bank is actively building the technology required to support tokenized stocks but needs more time for suitable financial products and institutional demand to develop. Speaking during TOKEN2049 in Singapore, the executive described Q1 2027 as a more realistic target than the timetable she outlined in March. The updated schedule concerns support for tokenized securities on Morgan Stanley’s existing trading infrastructure, not the launch of a separate cryptocurrency exchange.
The revised target has not been accompanied by a confirmed launch date, a list of eligible stocks or an announcement that tokenized equity trading is already available on the bank’s platform.
Morgan Stanley moves tokenized stock trading to 2027
Morgan Stanley plans to introduce support for tokenized equities through its Trajectory Cross alternative trading system, an established venue that handles transactions outside conventional stock exchanges. The platform already supports traditional equities, exchange-traded funds and American Depositary Receipts. Oldenburg previously outlined plans to extend those capabilities to tokenized securities during the second half of 2026.
Her earlier timetable was disclosed during the Digital Asset Summit in March, when she discussed bringing blockchain-based securities into the bank’s existing trading operations. As crypto.news reported at the time, the proposed service was expected to support selected U.S. stocks and ETFs alongside their conventional equivalents. The bank has since adjusted its expectations as work continues on the necessary infrastructure.
Oldenburg explained that institutional demand remains limited partly because the products customers would trade have not yet become widely available. She said the team must have suitable securities before it can provide trading support through the ATS.
“We need product in order to be able to support them within the ATS.”
The executive said the bank is continuing development while monitoring activity among custodians, trading venues, regulators and other financial institutions. She did not identify a particular technical failure or disclose additional project costs associated with the revised timetable.
An alternative trading system allows buyers and sellers to execute securities transactions through a regulated venue operating outside a national securities exchange. Morgan Stanley’s proposed changes would extend an existing securities business to blockchain-based representations of financial assets. The bank has not announced which blockchain networks it intends to use or whether all customers currently eligible for Trajectory Cross would qualify for the planned tokenized equity service.
DTCC prepares October launch as U.S. stock rules change
Morgan Stanley’s preparations coincide with a planned October 2026 launch of a tokenization service from the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC). Oldenburg identified the upcoming service as one of the developments the bank is monitoring while building its own capabilities.
In a May 4 announcement, DTCC said more than 50 companies were participating in an industry working group supporting the development of tokenized securities infrastructure. The project includes traditional financial institutions, digital asset companies, brokers and market infrastructure providers. Its planned service would allow eligible securities held at the Depository Trust Company to be represented through blockchain-based records.
DTCC completed production transactions involving tokenized securities on July 15, including transactions referencing U.S. Treasury instruments and equities. According to its official update, the exercise involved approximately 40 participating firms and demonstrated several types of financial transactions using DTC-custodied assets. DTCC maintained its October launch target after completing the production activity.
As previously reported, DTCC’s proposed service includes securities already held within its traditional custody system. The infrastructure provider said tokenized holdings would preserve the ownership rights and investor protections associated with their conventional forms. Eligible assets under consideration include U.S. stocks, Treasury securities and major exchange-traded funds.
Separately, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission introduced temporary exemptions on September 17 for certain platforms trading tokenized stocks. The agency’s official announcement permits qualifying tokenized securities venues to operate through approved automated market maker arrangements under defined conditions.
The SEC requires tokenized stocks traded under the exemptions to provide holders with the same rights as the corresponding traditional securities. Trading venues face restrictions on eligible symbols and volumes, while issuers must have an opportunity to object to certain third-party tokenizations. The exemptions do not constitute approval of Morgan Stanley’s proposed ATS service, which remains subject to its own applicable regulatory requirements.
Morgan Stanley builds wallets and digital asset infrastructure
Morgan Stanley is preparing other digital asset services while working toward tokenized equity support. According to Oldenburg, the bank is developing proprietary wallet infrastructure that would allow customers to hold digital assets and tokenized financial products through an experience integrated with its existing systems.
The proposed wallet is designed to operate with institutional custody arrangements, with the underlying technology largely managed by the bank. The executive described a system intended to reduce the technical work required of customers interacting with blockchain-based investments. Morgan Stanley has not announced that the wallet is fully operational or confirmed which tokenized securities it will initially support.
The bank recently established a Digital Asset Lab to examine blockchain applications before introducing them into production environments. The initiative covers technologies that could support financial products, including stablecoins, decentralized finance systems and tokenized assets. Its work focuses on testing technical capabilities and assessing operational risks.
In related coverage, Morgan Stanley’s September 29 initiative was described as an internal testing environment for tokenized deposits, digital currencies, money market funds and decentralized finance applications. The lab does not represent a public launch of the products being studied.
Morgan Stanley has already expanded direct cryptocurrency access through E*TRADE. In July, the brokerage made Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana trading available to eligible customers, with a reported transaction fee of 0.50%. As crypto.news reported, the rollout forms part of the firm’s existing digital asset business, separate from the proposed tokenized stock trading service.
The company has pursued federal banking authorization for dedicated digital asset custody operations. According to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s licensing records, Morgan Stanley Digital Trust received a conditional charter decision dated June 18, 2026. The trust bank would operate from Purchase, New York, subject to satisfying the requirements attached to the authorization.
Morgan Stanley sees tokenized assets reaching trillions by 2030
Beyond publicly traded stocks, Oldenburg identified private shares, structured financial products and private fund interests as possible areas for blockchain adoption. Such instruments often involve administrative work related to ownership records, investor eligibility and transaction processing. The executive expects tokenization to offer opportunities for financial institutions seeking to manage those processes through digital infrastructure.
Morgan Stanley’s proposed strategy involves maintaining support for conventional securities while preparing to handle blockchain-based assets. Oldenburg described the bank’s objective as “raising, allocating, and managing capital onchain”, with clients potentially using traditional and tokenized instruments within the same investment relationships.
The executive characterized the longer-term development as “the securitization of everything”, referring to her expectation that more financial instruments could eventually be issued, traded or managed through tokenized structures. Her comments included possible future use of tokenized assets as collateral, though Morgan Stanley did not announce a new collateral product connected to its planned equities service.
Oldenburg predicted that the market for tokenized real-world assets would reach between $3 trillion and $10 trillion by 2030. She described her confidence in that range with the phrase “without question.” The estimate is her forecast, not an established market outcome or a projection independently confirmed by regulators.
Other financial institutions are developing tokenized securities infrastructure. Nasdaq has pursued changes to support tokenized equities, while exchange operators and digital asset companies are examining securities trading through blockchain networks. The SEC’s September exemption creates a limited regulatory route for qualifying venues, although the agency continues to seek feedback before establishing more permanent requirements.
For Morgan Stanley, the revised Q1 2027 target remains conditional on the availability of suitable products, client demand and the necessary operational infrastructure. Oldenburg said the bank is monitoring DTCC’s October service launch and the U.S. regulatory environment as its development team prepares tokenized equity support. The company has not published a final launch date, list of supported securities or timetable for customer onboarding.
