Tokenised equities lead investor preferences despite barriers, research shows

Research from Stox Group surveying 200 institutional investors across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific identifies public equities as the most attractive asset class for tokenization. Investors are primarily driven by the promise of instant settlement, cited by 36% of respondents, and 24/7 continuous trading capabilities at 31%. Despite this interest, the study highlights significant barriers to mainstream adoption, including concerns over counterparty and custody risks for 39% of participants. Regulatory uncertainty remains a major hurdle for 38% of investors, while 46% point to fragmented liquidity across various blockchain networks as a critical obstacle. For tokenized equities specifically, weak secondary markets and challenges regarding valuation data accuracy hinder portfolio management for nearly half of those surveyed. The findings underscore that while the efficiency gains of blockchain are recognized, institutional appetite is currently tempered by a lack of robust infrastructure and legal clarity. Ultimately, the transition of tokenized equities into mainstream portfolios depends on aligning blockchain benefits with traditional institutional-grade safeguards and transparency standards.