Why Morgan Stanley sees tokenized securities as a ‘natural path’ from H2 2026

The institutional race for tokenized securities is heating up. Conventional inventory exchanges such because the New York Inventory Trade (NYSE) and Nasdaq are partnering with tech corporations to construct techniques for tokenized securities.

Funding banks are additionally gearing up for a similar. Based on Morgan Stanley’s head of crypto, Amy Oldenburg, the worldwide wealth administration and funding financial institution will roll out assist for tokenized securities in H2 2026. 

On the sidelines of Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit, Oldenburg said, 

One of many issues we’re planning for the second half of 2026 is popping our Trajectory Cross, our darkish pool, to assist tokenized securities later this 12 months. 

She added,

It already helps conventional equities, ETFs, and ADRs. So, it’s a pure path ahead to open our infrastructure to assist tokenized equities going ahead.

Unpacking Morgan Stanley’s crypto and tokenization wager

Morgan Stanley is among the many large 4 wirehouses, alongside Merrill Lynch (Financial institution of America), UBS, and Wells Fargo, that enable their rich purchasers to spend money on crypto. Collectively, these corporations oversee about $15–17 trillion in shopper belongings, with Morgan Stanley main at $8.2 trillion.

In consequence, they have been considered as the important thing drivers of the ‘second-wave’ of Bitcoin ETF adoption. Curiously, this roadmap is already taking part in out. 

In late 2025, Morgan Stanley turned the primary wirehouse to enable advisors to actively pitch spot BTC and ETH ETFs to all wealth administration purchasers, together with these dealing with retirement accounts. This was an growth of its earlier restricted crypto ETF entry, which was restricted to rich people in August 2024. 

Nonetheless, spot crypto entry was included in Morgan Stanley’s E·TRADE platform for buying and selling shares, bonds, ETFs, and extra. By way of its asset administration unit, the wirehouse has utilized for an in-house spot BTC ETF, and market watchers consider it may flip the demand from BlackRock’s IBIT. Now, it’s betting on the subsequent hottest market narrative: tokenization. 

As talked about earlier, each Nasdaq and NYSE are setting the bottom for tokenized securities buying and selling. For tradFi gamers, tokenization improves operational effectivity and allows an expanded international market that trades 24/7.  

The phase has already exploded to $1 billion in whole worth, with 45% development in month-to-month switch quantity to $2.5 billion, underscoring the large adoption within the sub-sector.  The truth is, in March, AI and tokenized belongings have been the top-performing sectors and many of the segments that noticed vital adoption. 

Highlighting the rising traction, Grayscale noted, 

Development in tokenization exercise has remained sturdy. Tokenized belongings reached new highs, up 245% 12 months over 12 months. Stablecoins grew 35%.

Last Abstract

• Morgan Stanley is now betting on tokenized securities, with seemingly buying and selling assist anticipated later this 12 months. 
• Tokenized belongings have seen one of many highest development charges within the crypto market, with adoption rising 245% YoY.