Coinbase launched tokenized Apple and Nvidia shares on Base. Non-U.S. users can trade or collateralize them. More stocks and real-world assets are coming.
Coinbase put tokenized stocks on its Base layer-2 network Monday, starting with fractional shares of Apple and Nvidia. Any eligible user outside the United States can now hold a claim on a real equity share in a self-custody wallet. The tokens trade on the Aerodrome decentralized exchange and can be posted as collateral on Aave, the company said.
Each token is built on a standard called B20, which Coinbase designed to handle dividends and stock splits without changing token balances. That means an open lending position or liquidity pool doesn't break when Apple pays out. The underlying shares sit with Alpaca, a regulated broker and custodian, giving holders a direct claim rather than exposure to a derivative that tracks the price, Coinbase said.
Jesse Pollak, Base's lead developer, called the launch a "big deal" on X. The Aerodrome token (AERO) rose more than 13% on the day.
The move is the second time in a week a U.S. company has shipped a product that Americans cannot use. Coinbase added perpetual futures through Hyperliquid on Base the previous Wednesday, excluding U.S., U.K., and Canadian users. Robinhood launched its own layer-2 chain last month with tokenized stocks among the first offerings, available in over 120 countries but not at home.
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev spent last week pressing U.S. policymakers to fix the rules, writing that it would be "a strange outcome" if the rest of the world built the future of ownership around American assets while Americans watched. The SEC has a tokenized-stock exemption sitting delayed, and its new Regulation Crypto Assets proposal covers token fundraising rather than equity tokenization.
Base says more Coinbase-issued stocks and other real-world assets arrive in the coming weeks. The infrastructure is finished and shipping. The rules are not.
For context, the tokenized equity market has grown to $1.48 billion, with competitors like Bybit adding Meta and Tesla stocks. Coinbase's launch on Base, built on a standard that handles corporate actions natively, could accelerate the migration of traditional equities to onchain settlement.
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