Columbia Professor Calls NYSE Tokenization Plan ‘Vaporware’
A Columbia Business School professor has questioned the New York Stock Exchange’s newly announced plan to build a blockchain platform for real-world asset tokenization, citing a lack of technical detail and potential misalignment with crypto principles.
In an X post on Tuesday, Omid Malekan said the announcement resembles “vaporware,” noting unanswered issues such as the underlying chain, whether tokens would be permissioned or permissionless (or a hybrid), and how token economics and fees would be structured.
Vaporware typically refers to a product that is publicized before it exists in a working form and without clear implementation specifics.
On Monday, the NYSE and its parent company, Intercontinental Exchange, outlined a platform designed to support around-the-clock trading and instant settlement of stocks and exchange-traded funds using a blockchain-based post-trade system, with multi-chain compatibility and custody capabilities.
Malekan argued that the NYSE’s operations are built on a “highly centralized and oligopolistic architecture,” adding in a Fortune opinion piece that advances in computer science and cryptography would not change that dynamic unless the exchange significantly reshaped relationships with key partners.
He compared the exchange’s move to AT&T’s attempt in the late 1990s to steer the early internet, suggesting that leadership in one technological era does not guarantee leadership in the next.
“Tokenization represents a radically different architecture. It requires different skills and business models to be useful,” Malekan wrote on X, concluding that he does not see a clear path for the NYSE’s tokenization-focused blockchain to succeed.
The NYSE was contacted for additional information about its tokenization initiative.
Industry executives view NYSE tokenization plan as a positive step
Despite the criticism, several industry participants described the NYSE’s tokenization efforts as constructive for the broader blockchain sector.
“On-chain trading of native tokenized equities coming from NYSE, no wrappers, no derivatives, no tokenized entitlements, bullish,” said Carlos Domingo, founder and CEO of RWA tokenization platform Securitize, on Tuesday.
“It’s about time we put the best tech to use,” added Alexander Spiegelman, head of research at Aptos Labs.
ARK Invest said on Wednesday that the RWA tokenization market could expand from $22.2 billion to $11 trillion by 2023, driven by greater regulatory clarity and enhanced institutional-grade infrastructure.
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