Securitize: Integrated Issuance and Transfer Agent Platform

Securitize has surpassed $4 billion in tokenized assets under management, operates the second-largest security token ATS by trading volume (28% market share), and manages 1.2 million investor accounts across its integrated issuance, transfer agent, and secondary market trading platform. Securitize’s partnership with BlackRock on the BUIDL tokenized Treasury fund — which reached $1.87 billion in AUM, commanding 45% market share of all tokenized treasuries according to RWA.xyz — established the platform as the institutional standard-bearer for tokenized securities. In October 2025, Securitize announced a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners II at a $1.25 billion valuation to go public, and in 2025 it became the only company licensed for digital securities in both the U.S. and EU.

Company Overview

Founded in 2017 by Carlos Domingo (former CEO of Telefonica R&D), Securitize built the most vertically integrated platform in the SEC-regulated tokenized securities ecosystem. The company has raised over $80 million from investors including BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, Blockchain Capital, and Nomura.

Securitize’s competitive advantage is vertical integration — it is the only major platform that combines all three critical functions (issuance, transfer agent, trading) under a single regulatory umbrella:

Integrated Service Stack

Token Issuance Platform

Securitize’s primary product is its digital securities issuance platform, which handles the complete lifecycle of a security token offering:

Pre-Offering. Securitize works with issuers and their counsel to structure the offering, select the appropriate exemption (Reg D 506(c), Reg A+, Reg S, or Rule 144A), configure smart contract compliance rules, and prepare investor-facing documentation.

Offering Execution. The platform manages investor onboarding (KYC/AML verification, accredited investor verification, suitability assessment), subscription agreement processing, payment collection, and token distribution. For Reg A+ offerings, Securitize assists with offering circular preparation and SEC qualification management.

Post-Offering. Ongoing services include cap table management, distribution processing (dividends, interest, revenue share), regulatory reporting (Form D amendments, Form 1-K/1-SA for Reg A+), and corporate action execution (stock splits, mergers, redemptions).

DS Protocol (Digital Securities Protocol)

Securitize’s DS Protocol is a proprietary compliance framework built on the ERC-1400 standard (developed by Polymath). The protocol embeds regulatory compliance directly into the token’s smart contract:

Transfer Restrictions. The DS Protocol enforces transfer restrictions at the smart contract layer, blocking any transfer that would violate:

• Rule 144 holding periods for restricted securities
• Accredited investor requirements for Reg D tokens
• Geographic restrictions for Reg S flowback prevention
• Maximum holder limits for offerings with investor count restrictions
• Bad actor disqualification checks

Identity Integration. Every wallet address interacting with a DS Protocol token must be linked to a verified identity through Securitize’s ID system. This ensures that every beneficial owner is known — a fundamental requirement for securities regulation and transfer agent record-keeping.

Compliance Service. The DS Protocol’s compliance service checks each proposed transfer against the issuer’s configured rules before execution. This on-chain compliance enforcement operates in real-time, without requiring manual review of individual transfers — a critical capability for enabling secondary market trading on ATS platforms.

Transfer Agent Services

Securitize’s Section 17A transfer agent registration is a foundational competitive advantage. As the registered transfer agent, Securitize maintains the official record of beneficial ownership for all securities issued on its platform. This role provides:

Legal authority. The transfer agent’s records are the authoritative ownership record under securities law, superseding on-chain token balances in the event of any discrepancy. Securitize reconciles blockchain records with its off-chain transfer agent ledger continuously.

Regulatory integration. Transfer agent status enables Securitize to process corporate actions (dividend distributions, stock splits, conversions), manage lost security claims, and respond to shareholder inquiries — all functions required by SEC rules that other platforms must outsource to third-party transfer agents.

Data control. As both the technology platform and transfer agent, Securitize has complete visibility into the ownership chain for every token — from initial issuance through secondary market trades — without requiring data sharing agreements with external transfer agents.

Securitize Markets (ATS)

Securitize Markets operates as an SEC-registered ATS and FINRA member broker-dealer, providing secondary market trading for tokens issued on the Securitize platform. The ATS operates during standard market hours (9:30am-4pm ET) with price-time priority order matching.

Market Statistics (Q1 2026):

• Approximately 85 active token listings
• $3.4 million average daily volume
• 28% of U.S. security token ATS market share
• 5 active market makers
• Average bid-ask spread of 2.2%
• Average order size of $8,500 (highest among major platforms, reflecting institutional focus)

Notable Partnerships and Issuances

BlackRock BUIDL Fund

In March 2024, Securitize partnered with BlackRock to launch BUIDL (BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund) — a tokenized money market fund investing in U.S. Treasury bills, cash, and repurchase agreements. BUIDL is an Ethereum-based token that represents shares in the fund, distributed through Securitize’s platform under Reg D 506(c).

BUIDL’s significance to the security token market:

• Scale: Reached $1.87 billion in AUM, commanding 45% market share of the $7.4 billion tokenized treasuries segment (mid-2025 data from RWA.xyz)
• Institutional credibility: BlackRock ($10+ trillion in total AUM) chose Securitize over every other tokenized infrastructure provider, and has been joined by institutional partners including Apollo, Hamilton Lane, KKR, VanEck, Morgan Stanley, ARK Invest, and BNY
• Proof of concept: Demonstrated that the largest asset manager in the world can issue tokenized fund shares within the existing SEC regulatory framework under Reg D 506(c)
• Settlement innovation: BUIDL tokens settle atomically on Ethereum (expanded to multiple chains), providing T+0 settlement versus T+1 for traditional money market fund shares
• Market context: The broader RWA on-chain market reached $19.4 billion in early 2026, with total tokenized assets peaking at $35 billion in November 2025

KKR Health Care Strategic Growth Fund

Securitize tokenized limited partnership interests in a KKR private equity fund, providing accredited investors with blockchain-based access to institutional private equity. The tokenization reduced the minimum investment from $5 million to $100,000, democratizing access to KKR’s institutional strategies.

Hamilton Lane Direct Equity Fund

Tokenized fund interests in Hamilton Lane’s private markets strategy, providing lower minimum investments and blockchain-based secondary market liquidity for traditionally illiquid private market allocations.

Arca U.S. Treasury Fund

The first SEC-registered digital fund to issue tokenized shares (ArCoin) under the Investment Company Act of 1940, using Securitize’s transfer agent infrastructure. This represented a significant precedent for tokenized registered funds under the most stringent SEC oversight regime.

Multi-Chain Strategy

Securitize supports token issuance across multiple blockchain networks:

• Ethereum — Primary network for institutional tokenizations, including BUIDL
• Polygon — Lower-cost network for offerings with higher transaction volumes
• Avalanche — Avalanche’s subnet architecture enables custom compliance-optimized environments
• Stellar — Supported for specific issuances requiring Stellar’s payment optimization

This multi-chain approach differentiates Securitize from platforms like INX (Ethereum only) and Polymath (Polymesh primary), providing issuers with flexibility to choose based on transaction costs, settlement speed, institutional preference, and interoperability requirements.

Competitive Position

Strengths: Vertical integration, institutional partnerships (BlackRock, KKR, Hamilton Lane), multi-chain support, integrated transfer agent, largest investor account base (1.2M accounts).

Challenges: Higher fee structure than competitors reflecting integrated services, concentration risk from vertical integration, dependence on institutional deal flow, standard trading hours limit access for international investors.

For the ATS platform comparison with detailed fee structures and trading metrics, see our comparisons section. For custody frameworks that Securitize and competitors use, see our market structure analysis. For the Reg D vs. Reg A+ exemption comparison relevant to Securitize’s offering support, see our comparison guide.

DS Protocol: Compliance-Embedded Smart Contracts

Securitize’s DS Protocol (Digital Securities Protocol) is the proprietary compliance engine that enforces regulatory requirements at the smart contract level. Key capabilities include:

• Automated Rule 144 enforcement. The protocol tracks holding periods for restricted securities and blocks transfers until the applicable holding period has expired, preventing premature resales of Reg D tokens.
• Investor qualification checks. Before any transfer, the protocol verifies that both the seller and buyer are eligible under the token’s compliance rules — including accredited investor status, jurisdictional eligibility, and maximum holder limits.
• Regulatory holds. The protocol can freeze specific tokens or wallets in response to regulatory orders, court injunctions, or compliance investigations — a capability required by securities regulators but absent from standard ERC-20 tokens.
• Cap table management. As both the transfer agent and protocol operator, Securitize maintains a single authoritative record of token ownership that is synchronized between the blockchain and the traditional transfer agent registry.

The DS Protocol has processed over $5 billion in compliant token transfers since launch, demonstrating the viability of programmable compliance at scale. For issuers, the protocol eliminates the risk of inadvertent compliance violations that could result in SEC enforcement action, as the smart contracts themselves prevent non-compliant transactions from executing.

For Securitize’s regulatory filings, see SEC EDGAR and FINRA BrokerCheck.