Key Takeaways
- • The 2026 Institutional Investor Digital Assets Survey, conducted by Coinbase and EY-Parthenon, found 69% of the 338 respondents asked about tokenized pre-IPO shares expressed strong or moderate interest in using tokenization to access private-company equity.
- • Institutional interest is not equivalent to market readiness: 63% of respondents were very interested in tokenized assets (up from 57% a year earlier), and interest in tokenizing their own assets among asset managers rose from 40% in 2025 to 64% in 2026.
- • The article identifies five barriers: unclear legal share ownership, limited economic liquidity, fragmented regulation, institutional infrastructure integration, and platform profitability.
- • The January 2026 SEC staff statement on tokenized securities stresses that representing a security through a crypto asset does not change the application of federal securities laws.
- • Regulatory uncertainty was the leading expected obstacle to investing in tokenized assets cited by the survey, and insufficient secondary-market liquidity was also flagged.
Summary
According to the 2026 Institutional Investor Digital Assets Survey, conducted by Coinbase and EY-Parthenon, 69% of respondents to a question about tokenized pre-IPO shares expressed strong or moderate interest in using tokenization to access private-company equity. The finding is drawn from 338 respondents interested in tokenized assets or wanting to learn more, within a broader sample of 351 institutional decision-makers. The same survey reported that 63% of respondents were very interested in investing in tokenized assets, versus 57% the previous year, and that interest among asset managers in tokenizing their own assets rose from 40% in 2025 to 64% in 2026.
The article argues that such interest does not establish market readiness. Investors may still require independently verified valuations, enforceable ownership rights, qualified custody and a credible exit strategy before committing capital. The author frames the industry's task as moving from interest to investable, functioning markets.
The first obstacle is legal ownership. A token may represent a legally recognized equity interest, beneficial ownership through an intermediary, or contractual exposure to a share price, and these structures are not interchangeable. The SEC published a staff statement in January 2026 noting that tokenized securities can use different structures and confer different rights, and that representing a security through a crypto asset does not change the application of federal securities laws. Issuers must reconcile blockchain records with legally authoritative shareholder registers or provide clear disclosure of intermediary arrangements.
The second obstacle is liquidity. Blockchain can simplify transfers, but the article stresses that technical transferability is not economic liquidity. Private-company valuations rely on funding rounds and infrequent disclosures rather than continuous prices. The survey lists insufficient secondary-market liquidity among expected barriers. Using a hypothetical example, the author notes that $500,000 in buying interest would cover only 10% of $5 million in proposed sales.
The third obstacle is regulatory fragmentation, with offering exemptions, investor eligibility, resale restrictions and disclosure rules varying by jurisdiction. The 2026 survey identified regulatory uncertainty as the leading expected obstacle to investing in tokenized assets. Fourth, platforms must integrate blockchain systems with shareholder registries, cap tables, custodians, payment and identity systems, covering dividends, voting and transfer restrictions. Fifth, revenue must cover costs. The article's illustrative model, which explicitly uses hypothetical assumptions, shows a $230,000 surplus under one adoption scenario but a $110,000 operating deficit against $450,000 in expenses if adoption is slower.
The article argues that such interest does not establish market readiness. Investors may still require independently verified valuations, enforceable ownership rights, qualified custody and a credible exit strategy before committing capital. The author frames the industry's task as moving from interest to investable, functioning markets.
The first obstacle is legal ownership. A token may represent a legally recognized equity interest, beneficial ownership through an intermediary, or contractual exposure to a share price, and these structures are not interchangeable. The SEC published a staff statement in January 2026 noting that tokenized securities can use different structures and confer different rights, and that representing a security through a crypto asset does not change the application of federal securities laws. Issuers must reconcile blockchain records with legally authoritative shareholder registers or provide clear disclosure of intermediary arrangements.
The second obstacle is liquidity. Blockchain can simplify transfers, but the article stresses that technical transferability is not economic liquidity. Private-company valuations rely on funding rounds and infrequent disclosures rather than continuous prices. The survey lists insufficient secondary-market liquidity among expected barriers. Using a hypothetical example, the author notes that $500,000 in buying interest would cover only 10% of $5 million in proposed sales.
The third obstacle is regulatory fragmentation, with offering exemptions, investor eligibility, resale restrictions and disclosure rules varying by jurisdiction. The 2026 survey identified regulatory uncertainty as the leading expected obstacle to investing in tokenized assets. Fourth, platforms must integrate blockchain systems with shareholder registries, cap tables, custodians, payment and identity systems, covering dividends, voting and transfer restrictions. Fifth, revenue must cover costs. The article's illustrative model, which explicitly uses hypothetical assumptions, shows a $230,000 surplus under one adoption scenario but a $110,000 operating deficit against $450,000 in expenses if adoption is slower.
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