BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, is in active discussions with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to tokenize its flagship iShares ETF lineup. This move would transfer traditional fund shares onto blockchain rails, creating programmable, 24/7-settling ETF tokens. BlackRock's Chief Financial Officer, Martin Small, highlighted the uncertainty of the timeline, stating the process could be completed "in 90 days or 12 months."
The initiative is seen as a transformative step for the crypto industry. Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise, called it "one of the key narratives to lead the market out of a bear market" and emphasized it is "very positive for layer one blockchains and the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector." Tokenized iShares would provide a new base layer of collateral for DeFi protocols, backed by regulated cash flows and the credibility of a major brand-name issuer like BlackRock.
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has previously described tokenization as "one of the most exciting areas of growth in financial markets." The firm's strategy targets the nearly $4 trillion held in digital wallets by users, particularly younger investors, who are comfortable with tokenized assets but lack easy access to traditional investment products like stocks, bonds, and diversified ETFs.
The news emerges as major cryptocurrencies trade lower. Bitcoin (BTC) is near $69,520, Ethereum (ETH) around $1,953, and Solana (SOL) close to $82.14, all showing declines over the last 24 hours. The broader tokenized real-world asset (RWA) market currently holds close to $25 billion in on-chain value, a figure that could explode with the entry of a giant like BlackRock. Other major asset managers, including Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, and Goldman Sachs, are also expected to accelerate their own tokenization strategies.
