Securitize hires former PayPal exec as US tokenization gains traction

cointelegraphPubblicato 2025-12-09Pubblicato ultima volta 2025-12-09

Introduzione

Securitize, a major tokenization platform, has hired former PayPal executive Jerome Roche as its new general counsel to strengthen its push for tokenized equity in the US. Roche previously led PayPal’s expansion into digital assets, including the PYUSD stablecoin. The company emphasized that tokenized securities are already accessible to US investors, countering the perception that such offerings are primarily available abroad. CEO Carlos Domingo stated that Securitize operates within a clear US regulatory framework using SEC-approved infrastructure, enabling fully compliant access to onchain securities. This development follows Securitize’s recent regulatory approval in the EU and signals growing acceptance of tokenization in the US, further evidenced by the SEC ending its investigation into rival platform Ondo Finance.

Major tokenization platform Securitize has doubled down on its push to bring tokenized equity to US investors, naming a former PayPal executive as its new general counsel.

Securitize on Tuesday announced the appointment of ex-PayPal executive Jerome Roche, who led the company’s expansion into digital asset projects, including the PayPal USD (PYUSD) stablecoin.

Securitize also said its tokenized securities are already available to US investors, challenging the notion that most issuers prefer to offer such products abroad due to local stock access.

“There’s been a perception that tokenized securities must be offered primarily outside the US, but our experience shows the opposite,” Securitize CEO Carlos Domingo told Cointelegraph.

“Clear regulatory path” for tokenized stocks in the US

According to Securitize, operating real-world asset (RWA) tokenization offerings inside the US regulatory perimeter is “not only possible, but scalable, at institutional quality.”

“We’ve demonstrated that there is a clear regulatory path for issuers to natively tokenize assets for US investors,” Domingo said.

“These are not synthetic representations, or derivatives, but real securities onchain,” the CEO said, adding:

“We operate using SEC-regulated infrastructure, including a registered transfer agent broker-dealer, and fund admin, which allows US investors to access and legally hold tokenized securities in a fully compliant framework.”

Securitize’s optimistic outlook on the US tokenization comes days after the platform obtained regulatory approval to operate as an investment company and a trading ánd settlement system in the European Union on Nov. 26. According to the company, the approval positioned it as one of the first operators for regulated digital securities infrastructure in both the US and EU.

“For the first time, modern ledger technology is giving us the ability to record ownership, settle transactions, and move value in ways that are fundamentally better than the fragmented systems we’ve inherited,” Securitize’s newly appointed general counsel, Roche, said in the announcement.

“Innovation only works when it fits squarely within the guardrails of applicable law,” he added, underscoring Securitize’s global push for regulated tokenized securities.

Related: US Treasurys lead tokenization wave as CoinShares predicts 2026 growth

Securitize’s news is another sign of the US warming to tokenization. On Monday, the Securities and Exchange Commission dropped its investigation into rival tokenization platform Ondo Finance.

Ondo said the decision marks a new chapter for tokenized securities in the US, where they are poised to become a “core part of the capital markets.”

Magazine: When privacy and AML laws conflict: Crypto projects’ impossible choice

Letture associate

Dragonfly Partner Haseeb: Why the Fastest-Growing Companies of the Future May All Stagnate at 149 Employees

Dragonfly partner Haseeb analyzes AI service pricing, particularly Anthropic's model, as a form of "tax policy" on AI labor. He observes a stark contrast: small companies (under ~150 users) benefit from low or zero marginal cost via flat-rate subscriptions, incentivizing them to maximize AI usage ("tokenmaxxing"). In contrast, large enterprises pay per-token API costs with high (e.g., 75%) markups, creating a disincentive for experimental or marginal automation. This pricing cliff at 150 users acts like a regulatory notch, potentially causing the fastest-growing AI-native companies to artificially cap their headcount to retain subsidized rates. Consequently, large-scale direct AI-for-human substitution within big corporations may not happen as expected; instead, job displacement may occur indirectly as lean, AI-heavy startups outcompete and erode their market share. The article concludes that token pricing, though not designed as such, functions as a powerful de facto tax policy shaping company structure and automation incentives.

链捕手2 min fa

Dragonfly Partner Haseeb: Why the Fastest-Growing Companies of the Future May All Stagnate at 149 Employees

链捕手2 min fa

If It's Not a Clear Yes, It's a No: A Nine-Year Retrospective by a VC Who Survived Four Cycles

**"Invest Only When Certain": A Nine-Year Retrospective from a VC Across Four Cycles** IOSG founder Jocy shares hard-earned lessons from nine years and over a hundred investments in Web3. The core challenge isn't identifying successful founders, but understanding why talented founders with solid ideas still fail. Through building a "failed founder database," IOSG identified six recurring failure patterns. **Founder Trait Red Flags:** 1. **Emotionally Unstable:** Founders who react defensively to criticism or publicly lash out under pressure (e.g., 80% drawdowns) often fail. Resilience is key. 2. **Lacking Hunger / Having a Fallback:** Founders with significant safety nets (family wealth, cushy fallback jobs) may lack the "do-or-die" commitment needed to survive crypto's brutal cycles. 3. **Unchecked Ego:** Includes "polished execution machines" who excel in known frameworks but struggle when paradigms shift, and "professor-types" who are technically brilliant but resistant to commercial feedback or coaching. **Project Structure Red Flags:** 4. **Token-First, Not Product-First:** Treating the token solely as a fundraising tool with no real utility or connection to product value is a major warning sign. The project should have value even if the token goes to zero. 5. **No Day-1 Exit Thesis:** Founders must have a clear, staged capital strategy from the start, understanding what each funding round needs to prove to unlock the next. "Exit before entry" is crucial. 6. **No Full-Cycle Experience:** Founders who haven't lived through a complete crypto bull/bear cycle (e.g., 2018, 2022) often underestimate their vulnerability. IOSG limits initial checks for such teams to $250k, sizing for risk. **The Positive Flipside: Desirable Founder Traits** The ideal candidate exhibits: obsessive problem-depth, being a second-time founder with a non-consensus vision, strong communication skills with *controlled* ego, relentless perseverance, and a global perspective with agency and taste (increasingly vital in the AI era). **Three Survival Tips for Founders:** 1. **Cash Flow Over Narrative:** Real revenue is what sustains projects, not vanity metrics. 2. **Tokens Are a Liability:** Avoid issuing a token unless absolutely necessary. The hidden costs (market making, liquidity, compliance) are immense, often a multi-million-dollar burden. 3. **Respect Liquidity:** Sell during peaks to build treasury, buy back to support the protocol during troughs. Be realistic about valuations and your ability to deliver for the next round. The final principle is simple yet paramount: **"If it's a borderline 'yes' or 'no,' don't invest."** In an industry that reinvents itself every few years, the discipline to consistently say "no" is the ultimate secret to longevity.

Foresight News21 min fa

If It's Not a Clear Yes, It's a No: A Nine-Year Retrospective by a VC Who Survived Four Cycles

Foresight News21 min fa

Zuckerberg’s Meta Makes a Move Into Prediction Markets With Arena

Meta, under CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is developing a new standalone prediction market platform called Arena. This move will position the tech giant in direct competition with established platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi, capitalizing on the sector's rapid growth. Arena will initially operate independently of Meta's core apps (Facebook, Instagram, etc.) and feature a points-based game rather than real-money betting, though monetization may be considered in the future. This isn't Meta's first foray into prediction markets; it previously launched and later discontinued the Forecast app in 2022. The broader prediction market sector has seen a significant boom, with users speculating on events from politics to sports, and trading volumes reaching an estimated $130 billion this year. The trend is gaining mainstream attention, exemplified by Trump Media's plans to integrate prediction markets into Truth Social. Given Meta's vast global user base of nearly 3.56 billion daily users, even modest engagement with Arena could dramatically expand participation in prediction markets. Its entry is expected to intensify competition for existing players while potentially validating and mainstreaming the entire prediction market model.

TheNewsCrypto38 min fa

Zuckerberg’s Meta Makes a Move Into Prediction Markets With Arena

TheNewsCrypto38 min fa

SemiAnalysis Deep Dive into CXMT: $50 Billion Revenue, An IPO Amidst a Supercycle

SemiAnalysis' in-depth report on ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT) details its rapid rise as China's largest upcoming semiconductor IPO. Founded in 2016 by Zhu Yiming, CXMT built its DRAM foundation on acquired patents and talent from the bankrupt German firm Qimonda. It achieved its first annual profit in 2025 after nearly a decade of significant capital support, primarily from patient Hefei municipal investors who fostered a local supply chain. The company is now capitalizing on a strong DRAM supercycle. Its revenue soared from ~$3.3B in 2024 to ~$8.6B in 2025, with Q1 2026 alone reaching ~$7.3B. SemiAnalysis projects full-year 2026 revenue could exceed $50B, driven by soaring ASPs rather than massive market share gains. While CXMT is closing the capacity gap with Micron, its product mix remains heavily focused on commodity DDR/LPDDR, which currently offers higher margins than its nascent HBM business. CXMT faces significant challenges in HBM, struggling with yield and stability for HBM3 8-Hi stacks while lagging behind the big three (Samsung, SK Hynix, Micron) in advanced nodes. However, strategic national priorities for AI self-sufficiency may push it to accelerate HBM capacity. Its complex IPO structure reveals heavy state-backed ownership and voting control over its fabs, with Alibaba appearing as both a key cloud customer and a minority shareholder. The IPO aims to raise ~$4.1B, primarily to strengthen its core DRAM manufacturing base.

marsbit41 min fa

SemiAnalysis Deep Dive into CXMT: $50 Billion Revenue, An IPO Amidst a Supercycle

marsbit41 min fa

From Corning to Ciena: The 10x Opportunity in the AI Optical Communication Chain

The transition from copper to optical communication in AI data centers is creating significant investment opportunities beyond just chipmakers. The entire photonics supply chain, from glass and fiber to connectors and test equipment, is critical. Corning, a key fiber supplier, has locked in multi-billion dollar, multi-year contracts with major cloud providers (Meta, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, NVIDIA), demonstrating pricing power and scale. Its profit growth is outpacing revenue growth. In the interconnect layer, Amphenol benefits from high growth in AI data centers, driven by strategic acquisitions and operational efficiency, while Credo Technology acts as a bridge between copper and optical solutions, though with high customer concentration risk. At the systems level, Ciena enables higher data capacity on existing fiber lines, with a strong backlog and cloud customer adoption. Further upstream, AXT is a bottleneck supplier of key indium phosphide wafers for lasers but faces geopolitical supply chain risks. VEO Solutions provides essential testing equipment for the entire photonics industry. A new pure-play photonics ETF (FOTO) offers a consolidated investment approach. The core thesis is that the physical limits of copper are driving an inevitable shift to optical technologies, with wealth flowing to essential, often overlooked, suppliers across the photonics value chain.

marsbit53 min fa

From Corning to Ciena: The 10x Opportunity in the AI Optical Communication Chain

marsbit53 min fa

Trading

Spot

Futures