Former NYSE President Sends Tokenization Message: Bullish's $4.2 Billion Plan

According to Bullish's official announcement dated November 9, Cunningham was appointed president of the company.

Cunningham, who served as president of the NYSE from 2018 to 2022, will apply her experience in traditional capital markets to the development of blockchain-based financial infrastructure.

The acquisition of Equiniti, which holds an important place in Bullish's strategy, has not yet been completed.

The $4.2 billion deal, announced in May 2026, is expected to close in January 2027, subject to the necessary regulatory approvals.

Equiniti is a share registrar serving approximately 3,000 corporate issuers and more than 20 million shareholders.

The company provides services such as maintaining share ownership records and processing changes in share ownership.

Bullish aims to combine Equiniti's existing infrastructure with its own digital asset trading and custody services.

Why Is Corporate Participation Important for Tokenization?

Cunningham noted that companies issuing shares are often excluded from the process under existing tokenization models.

Some tokenized stock products provide investors only with economic exposure to the price movements of the underlying assets.

However, not all of these products offer voting and dividend rights in the same way as traditional share ownership.

According to Cunningham, a more sustainable model requires the direct involvement of issuing companies.

According to data reported by CoinDesk, 56 of the 62 companies initially identified for a tokenized stock initiative backed by OKX and Intercontinental Exchange, the parent company of the NYSE, had raised objections as of November 6.

This may indicate that companies want a say not necessarily in tokenization itself, but in the conditions under which their own shares are digitized.

Solana, Ethereum and Aptos Are Part of the Plan

Bullish continues to evaluate different blockchain networks for its tokenization initiatives.

The networks identified by the company include Solana, Ethereum and Aptos.

In 2026, Bullish carried out initiatives aimed at representing its own shares on blockchain networks.

During an event held at the NYSE in October, a transfer of 61 million designated tokenized Bullish shares administered by Equiniti was demonstrated.

However, the initiatives involving the company's own shares do not guarantee that other publicly traded companies will adopt the same system.

Although Cunningham expressed her belief that tokenization will become widespread in traditional financial markets, she did not provide a definitive timeline for when this might happen.

Author's Assessment

Bullish's tokenization strategy highlights an important distinction in the application of blockchain technology to financial markets.

Creating a digital product that tracks the price of a stock is not the same as representing legally recognized shareholder rights on a blockchain.

The acquisition of Equiniti could enable Bullish to establish a connection with traditional shareholder recordkeeping systems.

However, the acquisition has not yet been completed, and widespread commercial adoption of the planned services has not been confirmed.

The decisive factor for the future of tokenization will be the adoption of the new system by companies, regulators and investors, alongside the development of the necessary technological infrastructure.