Lise Exchange, a French financial technology company, has received authorization from three national regulators to operate the European Union's first trading platform that handles stock transactions entirely through blockchain technology. The approval positions France at the center of efforts to modernize securities markets through distributed ledger systems that allow round-the-clock trading and immediate settlement.
What to Know:
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Lise Exchange received a DLT Trading and Settlement System license from France's banking supervisor, central bank, and securities regulator, operating under European Central Bank and European Securities and Markets Authority oversight.
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The platform combines two traditionally separate functions—matching buyers and sellers, and recording share ownership—using blockchain technology to create tokenized equities that exist only as cryptographic records while maintaining full shareholder rights.
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The tokenized assets market has expanded 224% since early 2024, according to industry data, as financial institutions accelerate adoption of blockchain-based systems for government bonds, corporate debt, and equity securities.
Regulatory Framework Takes Shape
The Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution, Banque de France, and Autorité des marchés financiers issued the license under regulations that subject the platform to European Central Bank and European Securities and Markets Authority supervision. The authorization allows Lise to function as both a Multilateral Trading Facility and a Central Securities Depository.
A Multilateral Trading Facility operates as a regulated venue where multiple parties can trade securities. A Central Securities Depository maintains the official record of who owns which shares. Lise's approval marks the first time European regulators have permitted a single entity to perform both roles using distributed ledger technology.
The tokenized shares carry International Securities Identification Numbers and confer the same voting and dividend rights as conventional stock certificates.
The difference lies in how ownership gets recorded—through cryptographic entries on a blockchain rather than traditional database systems maintained by clearinghouses.
The 2025 RWA Report documented that tokenized assets have grown 224% since early 2024. Financial institutions have moved government debt, credit instruments, and equity securities onto blockchain platforms. The data reflects adoption beyond pilot programs into operational systems handling client transactions.
European Landscape and Global Parallels
ESMA published a review of the EU's DLT Pilot Regime in June 2025 that identified three active infrastructures: CSD Prague, 21X AG, and 360X AG. The regulatory body recommended reducing barriers to entry to attract larger issuers to tokenized platforms. The assessment named Lise and Kriptown as advanced applicants in France and emphasized that linking these systems to central bank payment infrastructure remains necessary for broader market adoption.
Salman Banaei, general counsel at Plume, said compliance requirements including customer identity verification, anti-money laundering controls, asset backing standards, and transparent redemption processes are essential for institutional confidence in tokenized markets.
Regulatory action has accelerated in other jurisdictions.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved Plume as a registered transfer agent for tokenized securities, connecting blockchain-based shareholder records with the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation's infrastructure. Standard Chartered Bank expanded its custody arrangement with OKX to let institutional clients trade digital assets while keeping holdings under bank custody in accordance with the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation.
Ondo Global Markets reported onboarding more than $300 million in tokenized stocks and exchange-traded funds during a single month.
The volume demonstrates demand for blockchain-based versions of traditional securities within Europe's developing framework for real-world assets.
The developments suggest tokenization is moving from experimental phase to operational deployment in regulated markets. Access to central bank settlement systems appears critical for platforms seeking to handle significant transaction volumes. Traditional financial institutions are partnering with digital asset firms rather than building parallel systems.
Understanding Key Terms
Distributed ledger technology refers to databases maintained across multiple computers rather than a single central server. Blockchain represents one type of distributed ledger where transaction records are grouped into blocks and linked through cryptography. Tokenization converts ownership rights to assets into digital tokens that can be transferred through these networks.
A Multilateral Trading Facility provides a platform where multiple parties can buy and sell securities according to non-discretionary rules. A Central Securities Depository serves as the authoritative record keeper for who owns which securities and processes ownership transfers when trades occur.
Separating these functions has been standard practice in traditional markets, but blockchain systems can technically perform both roles simultaneously.
Real-world assets in this context means traditional financial instruments—stocks, bonds, real estate interests, commodities—that have been converted into digital tokens. The tokens represent claims on the underlying assets and derive their value from those claims rather than from speculation on the token itself.
What This Means for Markets
The approval establishes France as the first EU member state to authorize a fully blockchain-based stock trading and settlement system. The license places Paris in competition with financial centers that are developing similar infrastructure.
Immediate settlement removes the typical two-day delay between when a trade is executed and when ownership officially transfers. Twenty-four-hour trading breaks from the traditional schedule that limits stock transactions to business hours. Both features represent operational changes that could affect how investors and institutions manage portfolios and risk.