Cryptocurrency exchange Bitget has struck a deal with tokenisation specialist Ondo Finance that will let its global user base trade more than 100 tokenized US stocks as well as exchange‑traded funds (ETFs) and money-market funds later this summer, in one of the largest attempts yet to fuse mainstream equities with 24/7 digital asset markets.
Under the agreement, Bitget is joining Ondo’s Global Markets Alliance, a consortium of exchanges, infrastructure providers and custody firms working to standardise how real‑world assets (RWAs) such as equities are represented on blockchains. The move is intended to lower geographic and operational barriers that have long-limited international access to US securities.
Bitget says customers will “soon” be able to gain exposure to a curated basket of tokenized US stocks, ETFs and short‑duration cash products without opening a traditional US brokerage account. The listings expected to go live on the exchange before the end of the Northern Hemisphere summer are pitched as a diversification play for crypto‑first traders who want to move fluidly between digital tokens and traditional assets.
The exchange, headquartered in Seychelles and operating in more than 150 jurisdictions, reported serving over 120 million users and handling daily spot volumes above 3.5 billion USDT, ranking third globally by CoinGecko metrics; scale that could make Bitget a major distribution channel for tokenised securities if uptake materialises.
Tokenising conventional instruments wraps the economic exposure of an asset say, a share of Apple or units of an S&P 500 ETF in a blockchain‑based token that can trade around the clock, settle near‑instantly and be fractionally owned. Proponents argue the model broadens market access, particularly in regions where investors face capital controls, high minimum balances or limited brokerage infrastructure.
Bitget has already piloted tokenised equities through a recent integration of the xStocks framework on its Onchain platform, listing synthetic tickers tied to names including Tesla, Nvidia and Apple, and offering crypto‑style tooling such as limit orders and on‑chain transferability. That rollout laid the groundwork for a broader catalogue to be sourced through Ondo’s alliance.
“Tokenization will be the major driver of the next phase of digital asset adoption,” Bitget chief executive Gracy Chen said, adding that supporting tokenized US stocks brings the exchange closer to its goal of making “global, liquid, accessible” markets for its users.
Nathan Allman, founder and CEO of Ondo Finance, called the Bitget tie‑up “a significant step” in making on‑chain access to US equities more widely available, noting the exchange’s large customer footprint as critical infrastructure as institutional‑grade capital market rails migrate to blockchains.
“Bitget has a broad user base and is a crucial partner in enabling on-chain access to global financial markets. This partnership will accelerate the development of institutional-grade on-chain capital market infrastructure and broaden access to traditional financial markets such as U.S. equities for more users,” Nathan said.
Ondo’s Global Markets Alliance convenes infrastructure players ranging from LayerZero and Fireblocks to wallet providers such as Trust Wallet and Rainbow Wallet, reflecting a push to ensure tokenised securities can move seamlessly across platforms rather than live in isolated trading silos.
Earlier this month Bitget highlighted its CeDeFi strategy blending centralised exchange usability with on‑chain settlement when it enabled trading of tokenised blue‑chip names via xStocks, underscoring investor appetite to manage crypto and equities in a single dashboard.
While tokenisation can widen participation, pricing, liquidity and regulatory clarity remain open questions. Tokenised instruments have, in some cases across the market, traded at steep premiums or discounts to their underlying assets when liquidity is thin or when traditional exchanges are closed a risk investor will need to monitor as volumes build.
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