NYSE plans 24/7 on-chain trading for tokenized equities

The New York Stock Exchange, the institution that still rings a literal bell to start its trading day, is getting ready to make that bell irrelevant. NYSE parent company Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) announced plans to build a dedicated platform for trading and settling tokenized US equities and ETFs, with around-the-clock operations, instant settlement, and stablecoin funding all on the menu. The platform would operate as a separate venue alongside the traditional NYSE, combining the exchange’s existing Pillar matching engine with blockchain-based post-trade infrastructure. If regulators sign off, the system could go live later in 2026. What the NYSE is actually building Instead of settling trades on the current T+1 timeline (one business day after execution), the tokenized system would offer near-instant settlement. Trades could happen 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Orders would be denominated in dollars, and the platform would support fractional shares, meaning investors could buy $50 worth of a stock that trades at $500 per share. The system would allow stablecoin funding, pending regulatory approval. The tokenized shares themselves would maintain full fungibility with th...