Anchored, a San Mateo-based financial technology company operating under a British Virgin Islands regulatory framework, announced Thursday the launch of its US Tokenized Stocks platform — a blockchain-based system that allows investors in non-U.S. jurisdictions to purchase digital tokens representing fractional ownership of major American publicly traded companies including Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, and the S&P 500's largest constituents. The launch marks one of the most ambitious attempts yet to use real-world asset tokenization to democratize access to U.S. equity markets for the estimated 3 billion adults globally who lack affordable access to American stock markets.
The Anchored platform issues tokens on a permissioned blockchain that are backed 1:1 by the underlying shares, held in custody by a regulated broker-dealer. Investors can purchase fractional tokens starting at $1, receive proportional dividends, and trade the tokens on Anchored's marketplace during U.S. market hours and extended hours. The platform currently supports investors in 47 countries across Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan Africa — markets where traditional retail brokerage accounts for U.S. equities are either unavailable or carry prohibitive fees for small investors.
The Trillion-Dollar RWA Opportunity
Anchored's launch is part of a broader wave of real-world asset tokenization that has emerged as one of the most commercially compelling applications of blockchain technology. Boston Consulting Group estimates that $16 trillion worth of illiquid assets could be tokenized by 2030, with equities, bonds, and real estate representing the largest addressable categories. Several major financial institutions including BlackRock, JPMorgan, and Franklin Templeton have launched tokenized fund products in recent years, validating the regulatory and operational infrastructure for RWA tokenization at institutional scale.
The retail-focused angle differentiates Anchored from these institutional pioneers. CEO Michael Sung said the company's research found that in markets like Indonesia, Nigeria, and Colombia, there is 'enormous latent demand' for U.S. equity exposure among middle-class savers who follow American technology and consumer companies but have no practical way to invest in them. Anchored's platform removes minimum investment requirements and eliminates the complex account opening processes of traditional international brokerages.
Regulatory and Competitive Landscape
The tokenized equity space faces evolving regulatory scrutiny in multiple jurisdictions. U.S. securities regulators have generally required such platforms to ensure their tokens are not sold to U.S. persons and to maintain adequate custody and disclosure standards for non-U.S. investors. Anchored says its compliance framework was designed in consultation with legal advisors in each target market and that it holds appropriate licenses or operates under relevant exemptions in all 47 countries it serves.
Competitors in the tokenized equity space include Backed Finance, Ondo Finance's global equity products, and several crypto exchange-based synthetic equity platforms. The sector is growing rapidly: global tokenized equity assets under management more than tripled in 2025 to approximately $2.8 billion, according to data from DeFiLlama, and analysts at Bernstein project the market could reach $50 billion by 2028 if regulatory frameworks stabilize.