US SEC 'innovation exemption' tokenized stocks to see first trading platforms as soon as next quarter.

BlockBeats news, September 22: Taylor Lindman, Chief Legal Counsel of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Crypto Task Force, said the first batch of tokenized stock trading platforms based on the SEC's "innovation exemption" could begin preparations and submit related notices as early as the fourth quarter of 2026.

In an interview with "Crypto In America," Lindman said relevant companies are expected to publish notices of their operating plans in the coming months, with the first batch of applications potentially appearing "at some point next quarter." The SEC last week introduced a five-year conditional exemption allowing eligible platforms to trade tokenized versions of U.S. stocks on public blockchains through automated market makers (AMMs) and liquidity pools.

Lindman said such platforms are closer to "onchain finance" rather than true DeFi, because the platforms still need a clear operating entity and must bear compliance responsibilities. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said the current caps on the number of tradable stocks and trading volume are sufficient to support commercial operations, rather than being used only for technical testing; if the limits become an obstacle to development in the future, the SEC can readjust the relevant caps.

In addition, the exemption requires platforms to give relevant listed companies a 30-day objection period before offering company stock tokens issued by third parties. Peirce said she expects issuers overall to maintain a high level of interest in the tokenized stock market.