Author: PKU Blockchain Association Owen Chen(X @xizhe_chan)
Original Title: "Trillion-Dollar" Liquidity Release: Can Pre-IPO Equity Tokenization Restructure the PE/VC Exit Model? — The Evolution from Perps to TaaS
Abstract
Unlisted company equity (Pre-IPO Stock) represents a trillion-dollar value in global asset allocation but has long been constrained by two structural dilemmas: high entry barriers on the participation side and scarce liquidity exits on the exit side. Against the backdrop of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization becoming a focal point of financial innovation, "equity tokenization" is seen as a key mechanism to break the liquidity deadlock in the private market. This report focuses on the tokenization of underlying equity in unlisted companies (especially unicorns), aiming to clarify the evolution logic of this sector from early speculation to compliant infrastructure by analyzing the market status, implementation paths, and key challenges. The core conclusions of the report are as follows:
1. Market Status: Although global unicorn valuations reach trillions of dollars, the actual implemented scale of the tokenization market is only in the range of $100–200 million (if partially non-freely circulating projects are excluded, the actual tradable scale is only in the tens of millions). The market exhibits a strong head effect, with assets highly focused on a few AI tech unicorns like OpenAI and SpaceX. This indicates the industry is still in a very early stage, transitioning from "narrative space" to an "effective market," and has not yet formed a scaled asset supply and承接 capacity.
2. Path Differentiation: The industry has formed three differentiated paths, with the core differences lying in the "degree of rights confirmation" and "level of involvement of the target company":
-
Synthetic Asset Type (Republic, Ventuals): Includes Perps and debt note types, does not hold the underlying equity, only provides valuation exposure, meets speculative demand with high leverage, and primarily serves a traffic introduction role.
-
SPV Indirect Holding Type (Jarsy, PreStocks, Paimon): Holds equity through offshore SPVs and tokenizes the rights. This is the most mainstream落地 form currently. However, it faces dual compliance crackdowns from target companies and regulators. Recent public warnings from companies like OpenAI have exposed the legal fragility of this model in violating "transfer restriction clauses."
-
Native Collaborative Type (Securitize, Centrifuge): Essentially provides TaaS (Tokenization-as-a-Service) for target companies. Relying on Transfer Agent qualifications, it achieves a legal mapping between on-chain tokens and the shareholder register, realizing true equity on-chain. Although the landing cycle is long, it can solve the legal finality dilemma and provide a compliant path for IPO conversion and衔接.
3. Trend Analysis: Tokenization does not automatically create liquidity. The current market faces liquidity issues (thin markets, pricing failure). The future breakthrough point for the industry lies not in unilateral issuance but in collaboration with target companies:
- Twitter:https://twitter.com/BitpushNewsCN
Bitpush TG Group:https://t.me/BitPushCommunity
Bitpush TG Subscription: https://t.me/bitpush
