GLOBAL EQUITY TOKENIZATION ENTERS CRITICAL IMPLEMENTATION PHASE AHEAD OF OCTOBER DTC LAUNCH, NEW TFOS RESEARCH FINDS

TFOS's new Analytical Review maps how US tokenized-equity infrastructure moved from regulatory approval into live production in under a year, and what it means for South African brokers

JOHANNESBURG, Aug. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Turlov Family Office Securities (TFOS), an FSCA-regulated brokerage (FSP 52874), today unveiled its Analytical Review at the 10th Annual SAIFM Regulatory Summit. Report, "Tokenization of equity markets: the US, South Africa and the world," finds that the tokenized equity market reached an all-time high of $2.2 billion in July 2026, with $33.5 billion in liquid tokenized real-world assets outstanding. It identifies October 2026 as a critical infrastructure milestone, when the Depository Trust Company (DTC) is scheduled to move its tokenization service from limited production to full launch.

The review finds tokenized equities moving beyond regulatory debate and pilot projects into functioning market infrastructure, while brokers face growing pressure to understand how new settlement models may affect custody, disclosure, product design and client access.

What it means for South Africa: 300 licences, no securities regime

The FSCA has received 512 CASP applications since June 2023 and approved 300 licences, making South Africa one of the fastest-moving crypto-asset jurisdictions. However, the country does not yet have a dedicated regime for tokenized securities, although the JSE is discussing tokenized bonds.

The report places South Africa alongside Kazakhstan and Brazil, where crypto asset regulation has advanced faster than securities-tokenization infrastructure. A domestic path is already emerging: local pioneer RainFin has issued South Africa's first R100 million in tokenized debt assets on its permissioned XCAP Network.

Oleksandr Tsyhlin, Executive Director of TFOS and author of the review, said:

"The 'share = token' model is no longer theoretical: it is becoming a working reality in the world's leading markets. For South Africa the question is not whether tokenization arrives, but whether local firms arrive as designers of the product or only as distributors of someone else's."

The "share = token" shift moves into production

The research finds that the legal, settlement and product layers required for regulated tokenized US equities are now operating within the same market structure. The SEC approved Nasdaq's rule change in March, NYSE Rule 7.50 took effect in April, and in July both issuer-sponsored and third-party tokenization models became operational.

On 14 July, the DTC began limited production activity involving tokenized Russell 1000 stocks, major-index ETFs and US Treasuries. Full service launch is scheduled for October, while Nasdaq has guided the market towards the first token-settled trades by the end of Q3 2026.

The review distinguishes between the Regulated Rail, where the token is the security itself, and the Crypto-Native Rail, where structured notes or derivatives may provide price exposure without ownership. TFOS recommends South African firms begin this review ahead of October.

FULL REPORT: events.tfos.com/tokenization-review

Download the report free of charge.