Uniswap founder Hayden Adams argued that real-world asset tokenization is dismantling traditional market-making structures and could make automated market makers, or AMMs, central to financial markets. In a post on X published August 25, Adams said tokenization is not just an infrastructure upgrade but a fundamental shift in how liquidity is provided and which assets are traded.
Adams highlighted that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has approved stock token trading by Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange, while the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation has conducted live trading tests. These developments suggest tokenized securities are moving from experimental to practical with regulatory backing.
He pointed to a Uniswap pool on the Robinhood Chain containing 10 stock tokens and SPY, an ETF tracking the S&P 500, which recorded $33 million in trading volume in just 12 days. Adams said that volume demonstrates real user demand and liquidity formation outside conventional venues.
Automated market makers use algorithms to price assets and provide liquidity without a central counterparty. Adams described AMMs as an early-stage technology with room for development, suggesting current limitations such as capital efficiency and slippage may be addressed as the technology matures. The shift is significant because traditional market-making is often concentrated among a few large firms, while AMMs allow anyone to contribute liquidity.
According to a Bank for International Settlements working paper published in November 2024, AMM-based decentralized exchanges process over $10 billion worth of digital assets every day. Coinbase Research estimated that approximately $18 billion in distributed real-world assets, excluding stablecoins, had been placed on public blockchains by January 2026, roughly 18 times the figure for 2022. The bulk of that amount accounts for tokenized U.S. Treasuries, with BlackRock’s BUIDL fund holding more than $2 billion, or nearly 25% of the total tokenized Treasuries.
Regulatory clarity is also improving. The 2025 GENIUS Act and SEC reform under Paul Atkins have created a more favorable U.S. environment, while Europe’s MiCA and DLT pilot regime, Singapore’s Project Guardian, and the UAE’s VARA framework are contributing to tokenization hubs globally. The DTCC announced on July 15 that it has turned assets stored in its depository into tokens for live production trades involving over 30 conventional and digital market companies, and intends to introduce its tokenization service in October 2026.
However, Adams’ argument also highlights that AMMs remain early. A BIS study found that a small group of skilled participants provided between 65% and 85% of liquidity on Uniswap V3, meaning liquidity has become concentrated among specialists despite AMMs democratizing market-making. Tokenization alone does not create liquidity; on-chain markets still require market makers ready to provide two-sided quotes and hold inventory. Many tokenized funds and bonds remain available only to accredited investors with thin secondary trading.
The regulatory question hanging over on-chain trading remains unresolved. In a March 30, 2026 letter to the SEC’s Crypto Task Force, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association argued that regulators should focus on the functions of a protocol rather than its lack of decentralization. SIFMA raised concerns about slippage, incentives for liquidity providers, pseudonymous trading, and limited surveillance of market-manipulation opportunities.
Adams’ comments align with broader industry trends. Major exchanges and clearinghouses are exploring tokenization, and projects like Ondo Finance and BlackRock’s BUIDL fund are already issuing tokenized funds. The convergence of traditional finance and decentralized protocols is accelerating, and AMMs are positioned to play a pivotal role.
