In October 2025, while speaking at the Token2049 crypto conference in Singapore, Vlad Tenev, the CEO of Robinhood, made comments about tokenisation, saying:
"Tokenisation is like a freight train. It can't be stopped, and eventually it's going to eat the entire financial system."
For many already in the train, the comments were positive, a signal of a dynamic shift in global finance. But, for a bigger lot, Tenev's words were a wake-up call.
The big question: what is tokenisation?
Tokenisation is the creation of digital, blockchain-based tokens that represent assets in the real world. With tokenisation, anything can be sold or held on blockchain ledgers. Imagine holding equities, bonds, real estate, private credit, infrastructure, and even commodities as tokens on the ledger.
The relevance of tokenisation lies in the perks it brings, including 24/7 markets, global asset accessibility, and efficiency.
Robinhood Markets and Tokenisation
True to Tenev's words, Robinhood is already leading the tokenisation journey. In June this year, news of Robinhood launching tokenised versions of over 200 U.S stocks for EU-based customers rocked the finance space. Some of the already listed tokenised stocks included those of Nvidia (NVDA.O), Apple (AAPL.O), and Microsoft (MSFT.O).
While Tenev believes tokenisation would allow markets to operate 24/7, the tokenised versions of the 200 stocks began trading 24 hours a day, for 5 days a week. But Robinhood's journey would not end with the 200 tokens. Speaking at an earlier event in France, Robinhood's top executives mentioned that the platform is already planning to offer tokens linked to stocks of some private companies, including Elon Musk's SpaceX and Sam Altman's OpenAI.
While the offering of U.S. equities in the form of tokens is a service only for the E.U., others across the globe showed interest, as a way to gain exposure.
Interview Highlights: Tenev's Key Messages at Token2049
During his interview, Tenev made powerful comments on how tokenisation would be a central innovation in the finance space. Speaking about Robinhood's decision to offer tokenised U.S. stock in the EU, Tenev highlighted that they want to reach global markets. According to the Robinhood boss, the exchange aims to bring exposure to international markets through tokenisation. He said:
"Tokenised stocks will become the default way for people outside the U.S. to get exposure to American equities."
Tokenisation, according to Tenev, is the key to marrying the worlds of traditional finance and crypto. He stated:
"Crypto and traditional finance have been living in separate worlds, but they'll fully merge. In the future, everything will be on-chain in some form, and the distinction will disappear."
Although he firmly believes that tokenisation is the future, Tenev argues that it will take time for everyone to be comfortable with it. Major markets will introduce proper regulatory and infrastructural frameworks for tokenisation within the next five years, according to Tenev. But full adoption of this new model in all asset classes will happen within the next decade.
Robinhood and the CEO's Vision
Robinhood's vision was primarily to expand into an untapped market, where global investors can trade U.S.-based equity. And, according to many, Robinhood has a competitive advantage when compared to others. But why?
The equities exchange enjoyed a massive user base, coming primarily from its days in TradFi. In 2024, Robinhood had 25.2 million funded accounts, with the preceding year reporting about 23.2 million users. The number of monthly active users as of 2023 stood at 10.6 million. The new Robinhood, a tokenisation-focused platform, inherits all these users.
The CEO wants to see Robinhood create a new record in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the first to tokenise SpaceX and OpenAI equity. Their strategy? Tenev says it is to work closely with companies to make sure they see tangible benefits and welcome tokenisation. In the end, according to Tenev, Robinhood is definitely going to be a leader in private markets.
The Challenges Ahead?
Private Companies Pushing Back?
While Robinhood intends to tokenise private companies, Tenev argues that many are still uncomfortable with the idea. Case point is OpenAI. Following Robinhood's claims to tokenise OpenAI, the company released a public statement saying:
"We did not partner with Robinhood, we're not involved in this, and do not endorse it. Any transfer of OpenAI equity requires our approval, we did not approve any transfer… please be careful."
Robinhood's response was:
"To cap off our recent crypto event, we announced a limited stock token giveaway on OpenAI and SpaceX to eligible European customers. These tokens give retail investors indirect exposure to private markets, opening up access, and are enabled by Robinhood's ownership stake in a special purpose vehicle."
And the Robinhood CEO actually noted that the tokens are not "equity" but give exposure to private assets. It is clear, based on the OpenAI-Robinhood back and forth, that markets are still not entirely comfortable with the idea. But the wave is here.
Regulatory Clarity
The lack of regulatory clarity in some regions, including the U.S., means tokenisation will be slower. According to U.S. regulators, any token representing securities will still fall under the securities laws. Hester Peirce of the US SEC actually emphasised that "tokenised securities are still securities." However, the regulatory frameworks are still in their infancy.
Earlier, Tom Farley, the ex-NYSE president and current head of crypto exchange Bullish, said something similar about the U.S. and its lagging pace in regulations.
Despite the U.S. thriving as a financial powerhouse, jurisdictions that already have regulations will attract innovation. For instance, the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) is already operational in the E.U., setting the region ahead of others.
How Will The Financial Market React
The “freight train” analogy by Vlad Tenev is a clear expression of the dynamic reshaping of the global financial system. Early proof is already here with EU investors accessing tokenised stock of U.S equities. Amidst the regulatory gap, the train is already on the move based on the developments.
The immediate market reaction after Tenev’s freight train comment was nothing short of fascinating. For Robinhood, the initial response was a slight dip of about 2.8% on the announcement day, breaking a month-long rally. This was perhaps a show of investors' caution with regulatory and legal clarity around crypto.
However, the long-term implications of the statement can't be matched. After launching 200 tokenised stocks, Robinhood’s market price surged, reaching a 179% year-to-date gain at one point. Other companies in the tokenisation field reported gains on news that tokenisation was going more mainstream.
Analysts have been joining the conversation on asset tokenisation. For instance, Tiger Research, on X, predicts that by 2030, the tokenisation world’s market value will be $1.34 trillion, a 2680x growth. Tiger Research believes that by 2030, the tokenisation space will have reached at least 1% of global stock.
With all this positivity, there is no better time for TradFi institutions to jump into the “freight train” than now. When the market is still young and the market value hasn't yet cracked a trillion, it's time for companies to learn about tokenisation. For investors and companies looking to know more about tokenisation, how it works, and what its future holds, uCubed is a good place to find all the tools you need to start.
