Market forecasts have exploded in recent years. Citi estimated that tokenized assets could reach a market capitalization of $5 trillion by 2030, while a report from the Boston Consulting Group and Ripple predicted a market worth $18.9 trillion by 2033.
Patent battle over tokenization infrastructure
At the center of the dispute are patents covering compliance systems for tokenized securities, digital asset issuance and redemption technology, and blockchain-based trading infrastructure.
tZERO said its investigation concluded that products including Securitize’s DS Protocol and Vault Registrar infringed patents covering self-enforced compliance controls for security tokens and cryptographic integration systems.
The company said it is also investigating possible infringement by at least six other companies in the areas of tokenization, institutional crypto infrastructure and decentralized finance.
Securitise rejected the claims.
“tZERO’s allegations are baseless and run counter to the spirit of fair play that best defines our industry,” the company said in a statement published on X.
Early pioneers face growing challenges
The dispute opposes two pioneers of tokenization.
tZERO was launched in 2014 and has spent over a decade developing technologies for regulated digital asset markets and claims to hold 105 patents worldwide across 23 patent families related to tokenized capital markets. Intercontinental Exchange, parent company of the NYSE, made a strategic investment in the company in 2022, and tZERO revealed plans to go public last year.
