Sergey Nazarov, chief executive of Chainlink, told the CFTC's innovation committee Thursday that the pace of financial tokenization will decide whether the United States retains its roughly 60 percent share of global equity value as markets move on-chain.
Nazarov argued to the regulatory committee that America's position in the global financial system depends on how quickly the shift happens. He cited what he described as his own experience as an infrastructure provider: thousands of founders have stopped building in the United States over regulatory uncertainty, he said. The comments came as the CFTC and SEC have begun coordinating on digital asset policy after years of jurisdictional overlap and separate enforcement efforts.
US equities account for approximately 60 percent of total investable equity market value globally, according to UBS and other market data. That concentration has historically drawn founders and capital to American exchanges and blockchain projects through deep capital markets, established custody infrastructure, and regulatory clarity. Tokenization, the process of converting traditional financial assets into blockchain-based tokens, has accelerated since 2024, with major asset managers and custodians beginning settlement and trading experiments on public blockchains.
Nazarov tied regulatory speed directly to competitiveness with other jurisdictions. Singapore, Switzerland, and the United Arab Emirates have each enacted clearer licensing frameworks for blockchain companies over the past 18 months, drawing venture funding and developer talent away from Silicon Valley and New York. He praised the SEC and CFTC for now working in concert, a shift from the regulatory fragmentation that marked 2023 and 2024.
The 60 percent US equity share sits unchanged from its level in 2022, according to UBS research, even as tokenization has moved from speculation to live infrastructure projects. Nazarov warned that inaction or continued regulatory delay could erode that share as global market participants route capital to jurisdictions with faster legal clarity on token settlement and custody.
The measure that will settle this argument is the count of American blockchain infrastructure companies that file new business licenses in the next 12 months compared to the same period in 2025. If that count falls, it will show founders are relocating their operations.
