[███░░░░]: Token-to-Equity, SEC Safe Harbor, and FASB's Stablecoin Upgrade

Welcome to the TAC's Progress Bar, where we combed through 514 relevant tokenization news stories from the week, analyzed the key stories on our weekly podcast, then distilled what you need to know into a few hundred words in this newsletter. Delivered to your inbox in time for Friday happy hour in NYC (usually).

This week brought three pieces of structural news: a first-of-its-kind token-to-equity conversion proposal, a credible SEC path for US-based token launches, and an accounting rule change that could finally make stablecoins a normal treasury asset for corporations. We also checked in with Matthias from Obligate on the launch of oTFY in DeFi and crossing a HUGE milestone. Summer may feel slow, but the builders are cooking.

Market KPIs (brought to you by RWA.xyz)

📈 RWA market cap was up less than 1% WoW to $38.5 billion
🏆 Biggest RWA winner: Tether Gold added ~$100M to reach $2.75 billion
🏆 Biggest network winner: Stellar added $75M to reach $3.3 billion

📈 Stablecoin market cap was flat at ~$299 billion
🏆 Biggest stablecoin winner: USDC added $500M
🏆 Biggest network winner: Ethereum added $700M

📈 Onchain risk free rates:
Short term treasuries (1m): 3.62%
Aave / DeFi: 3.59% (slightly below SOFR, reflecting subdued onchain demand)

The most prestigious (and selective) gathering of CEOs, investors and institutions is back! RWA Summit's flagship event will be in Brooklyn on September 1st and 2nd.

Apply to attend here and be sure to list me or TAC as your referral. If approved, use discount code TAC25 at checkout for 25% off your ticket price

Stories we're tracking this week

This week's biggest stories sit at the intersection of regulation, accounting, and the evolving structure of onchain capital formation.

• SEC proposes tiered crypto safe harbor for token launches, creating a formal exemption path for US-based network token projects for the first time. Teams building toward a decentralized network can now raise in tranches ($5M, $20M, and $75M per year) with escalating disclosure requirements, all under existing SEC authority without requiring Congressional action. The comment period is sixty days. This is the legal on-ramp that US-based token projects have needed since 2017.
• Centrifuge proposes converting CFG tokens into private company equity, in what would be the first token-to-equity conversion of its kind in the tokenization space. Under the proposal, each CFG token (total supply approximately 680-690 million) would convert into a share on the private cap table, subject to KYC. Galaxy is advising, CoinList would administer a trust for smaller holders, and yours truly from TAC is supporting on structuring. The move reflects a broader recognition that institutional investors cannot easily engage with governance tokens but can engage with equity.
• FASB proposes treating qualifying stablecoins as cash equivalents under GAAP, removing one of the most persistent friction points for corporate stablecoin adoption. Currently, any stablecoin held on a corporate balance sheet must be marked to market as a digital asset, creating significant accounting overhead even for a dollar-pegged instrument. The proposed criteria align closely with GENIUS Act standards, with additional liquidity reserve requirements. A ninety-day comment period is underway, with implementation realistically expected in Q1-Q2 2027.
• Obligate's oTFY trade finance token crossed $100M TVL, with the company's total TVL across all products growing from $40M to over $110M in just six weeks. OTFY wraps a revolving pool of commodity trade finance bonds originated by Tradeflow Capital Management, targeting a gross yield of approximately 10%. The token is structured as a tracker certificate rather than a bond, making it composable with DeFi lending protocols. Obligate also crossed $500M in total primary market issuance volume across all products.
• CFTC moved toward reshoring offshore crypto derivatives liquidity, a development that sent Hyperliquid's token up approximately 30% and contributed to renewed optimism around the Clarity bill. The Clarity legislation, which would formally delineate SEC and CFTC jurisdiction over crypto assets, sat at 25% odds on Polymarket this week, up from the prior week, following Trump's crypto summit comments and the CFTC news. Notable tokenization legend and CEO of Chainlink, Sergey Nazarov, spoke at the White House on tokenization's role in the US economy, highlighting how onchain infrastructure is driving adoption of US-dollar-denominated assets globally. The appearance signals continued high-level policy engagement from the tokenization industry and reflects the current administration's positioning around crypto as a tool for US financial dominance.

Tweet of the week

"JUST IN: Sergey Nazarov speaks at the White House on tokenization's impact on the American economy 'There's a very real and tangible outcome that's benefiting the adoption of U.S.-issued assets and the U.S. dollar'"
-- @chainlink (Chainlink)

Nine-Nine-Six Summer

This week on The First Trillion, Johnny and Charlie walked through the SEC's new crypto safe harbor proposal, FASB's stablecoin accounting rule change, and Centrifuge's landmark token-to-equity governance proposal. They also sat down with Matthias Wyss, CEO at Obligate, who shared that the company has tripled TVL in six weeks to over $110M across all products, crossed $500M in total primary market issuance, and launched its oTFY trade finance yield token on Solana with DeFi composability via Raydium and a major EVM lending market integration coming soon. The conversation covered why trade finance is a natural fit for onchain capital markets, what it takes to make a tokenized product genuinely DeFi-composable, and why Matthias thinks we are still in the first inning.

The episode is available below and we've summarized it for you here.

Stay ahead of the curve

Be sure to follow us on X, LinkedIn, and Spotify for real-time updates, behind-the-scenes insights, and the occasional hot take that didn't make it into the Progress Bar or the First Trillion podcast episode or summary.

Until next week,

The TAC Team