Learn · no euphemisms required
Tokenized stocks, from the holder’s side.
The token is the easy part. The difficult questions are what you own, who must cooperate, which powers can override your wallet and whether a protocol that receives the token can turn it into money.
Six essential guides
Start with the assumption you need to test
Do I own the share?
Registered title, beneficial interests, secured notes, unsecured claims and synthetic exposure are not interchangeable.
Read beneficial ownership → InsolvencyWhat if the issuer fails?
Why “backed 1:1” says less than segregation, trusts, perfected security and the custodian’s rights.
Read bankruptcy remoteness → ExitCan I turn it into cash?
Redemption rights, eligibility gates, minimums, fees and the difference between a documented route and one that has worked.
Read redemption → ControlWho can override my wallet?
Freeze, pause, clawback, allowlist, permanent-delegate and rebase powers—and what the chain cannot tell you.
Read issuer powers → PricingWhat does the price prove?
How oracle prices, issuer NAV, reference shares and executable pool prices can all be “correct” while meaning different things.
Read oracle risk → DeFiDoes custody mean control?
Why locking a token in a contract may not give a lender the legal or practical ability to realize collateral.
Read protocol custody →A useful reading order
Three passes through any token
- 1. Establish the claimRead ownership and bankruptcy first. They define the asset that survives beneath the token.
- 2. Establish the exitRead redemption and pricing. A claim can be real yet difficult or expensive to realize.
- 3. Establish who can interveneRead issuer powers and DeFi custody. Possession is not final when another actor can freeze, redirect or refuse recognition.