The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) announced plans to launch a tokenized trading and settlement platform that would allow U.S. equities and exchange-traded funds to trade 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in what could become the most significant structural change to American markets since the transition to electronic trading.

The initiative, led by NYSE parent Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), is designed to merge the exchange’s existing Pillar matching engine with a blockchain-based post-trade infrastructure capable of instant settlement. Under the proposed model, investors would be able to purchase fractional shares, place orders in precise dollar amounts, and fund trades using stablecoins or tokenized deposits—features that mirror crypto markets rather than traditional equities.

NYSE President Lynn Martin said the effort reflects the exchange’s strategic shift toward on-chain market infrastructure. “We are leading the industry toward fully on-chain solutions, grounded in the unmatched protections and high regulatory standards that position us to marry trust with state-of-the-art technology,” Martin said.

A major obstacle to 24/7 equities trading has historically been the banking system’s limited operating hours. ICE is addressing the liquidity gap by working with BNY Mellon and Citigroup to enable tokenized deposits and to extend clearinghouse functions beyond normal banking windows. This would allow margin and settlement payments to clear on weekends and overnight, removing one of the last barriers to non-stop equity trading.

The move places the NYSE in direct competition with retail platforms that have experimented with extended trading windows. Robinhood’s “24 Hour Market” feature, which allows overnight trading in select megacap stocks, has demonstrated strong retail demand. Kraken’s xStocks product and tokenized equity issuers such as Ondo Finance and eToro are also pushing trading toward a 24/7 model.

Institutional demand appears to be accelerating as well. The market capitalization of tokenized U.S. equities has surged to more than $800 million—up 2,500% from just $16 million a year earlier—according to on-chain data. The broader tokenized real-world asset market nearly quadrupled in 2025 to close the year near $20 billion, with forecasts projecting more than $100 billion in on-chain real-world asset value by the end of 2026.

If regulators approve the NYSE’s proposal, it would mark the first time a major U.S. exchange fully bridges traditional securities with crypto-style settlement rails, potentially redefining how global markets synchronize liquidity and price discovery. For Wall Street, the era of 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. trading may soon become a relic of the past.

‍