Avalanche chosen by NYSE for clearing and settlement of tokenised securities

• Clearing and settlement on the NYSE-affiliated tokenised securities platform will use Avalanche's core ledger technology, the blockchain announced.
• Speed, reliability, predictable operating costs and network controls drove the selection of Avalanche, according to NYSE's Dennis Lee.
• NYSE parent ICE is broadening its on-chain footprint through partnerships including OKX and Trade[XYZ], providing the backdrop to the announcement.

Avalanche (AVAX) rose 4% on Monday. The gain bucked the crypto market decline after Avalanche announced its core ledger technology would handle clearing for the New York Stock Exchange's (NYSE) planned tokenised securities trading platform.

Avalanche Selected for NYSE-Affiliated Tokenised Securities Clearing and Settlement

The developer behind Avalanche, Ava Labs, confirmed on Monday that the blockchain would power clearing infrastructure for the NYSE-affiliated digital alternative trading system (ATS). Subject to regulatory approvals, the platform is being built to enable 24/7 trading, clearing and settlement of tokenised securities.

Different components of NYSE's digital market infrastructure will use different technologies, according to Dennis Lee, NYSE Head of Digital Issuance.

Explaining the approach, Lee said: "At the NYSE, we're looking at how blockchain technology can expand what we offer in equities, and we're picking the right technology for each job,"

For the ledger that records and settles trades, he stressed the need for speed, reliability and predictable operating costs, alongside controls over who can participate in the network.

Fixed trading hours and delayed settlement have shaped the infrastructure used by traditional financial markets for decades, Ava Labs founder and CEO Emin Gün Sirer also said.

“For decades, financial markets have operated on infrastructure designed around fixed trading hours and delayed settlement. There is no longer a technical reason for these constraints to exist,” Sirer said in an X post published on Monday.

In his view, being chosen for the NYSE-affiliated platform marks a significant step for Avalanche's technology.

The platform's traded assets will not, however, be restricted to Avalanche-issued securities. NYSE's tokenised platform is expected to accommodate equities listed across several blockchain networks.

NYSE Moves Forward With Tokenised Securities Trading Plans

In January, NYSE announced it was developing a digital platform for tokenised securities trading and on-chain settlement. The latest development follows that announcement.

Among the proposed changes to traditional equity markets are 24-hour trading and stablecoin-based funding, both of which the planned platform is designed to support.

A March partnership announced by NYSE brought digital asset firm Securitize into the development of infrastructure for tokenised securities issuance and management. For the planned platform, Securitize became the first eligible digital transfer agent selected.

Connecting traditional financial markets to blockchain-based trading infrastructure is a wider strategic objective for NYSE parent Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), of which this initiative is part.

An agreement with crypto exchange OKX extended ICE's digital asset partnerships in March. Under the partnership, plans included access for OKX users to ICE-operated futures and NYSE tokenised equities markets.

ICE also joined forces with Trade[XYZ] to bring Hyperliquid-based perpetual futures markets to the US, spanning equities, commodities, foreign exchange and cryptocurrencies.

At the time of writing, AVAX trades at $8.65 following a 5.7% rise over the past 24 hours.