New York Stock Exchange Hints at NFT Trading in Latest Filing

Key Takeaways

The New York Stock Exchange has filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The document reveals the stock exchange may one day operate an exchange for NFT trading.
The NYSE said it has no near-term plans to offer customers a trading service focused on NFTs.

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The New York Stock Exchange may be interested in operating an NFT marketplace.

NYSE Reveals Interest in NFTs

The New York Stock Exchange has signaled that it may venture into the world of cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens. 

A trademark application dated Feb. 10 filed by the NYSE with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reveals the stock exchange is looking to provide an “online marketplace for buyers, sellers, and traders of downloadable digital goods authenticated by non-fungible tokens (NFTs).” The document also references potential business offerings around “digital collectibles,” “cryptocurrencies,” and “digital art.”

Over the past year, NFTs have exploded in popularity and found mainstream adoption. More than $25 billion worth of NFTs were traded during 2021, a large part of which came from collectible avatar projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club and digital art collections such as Art Blocks. 

Now, it appears that the NYSE is registering the appropriate trademarks to get in on the rapidly-growing NFT space. If and when it goes live, the NYSE-branded NFT marketplace will compete with the likes of dominant players in the niche, including OpenSea, LooksRare, Rarible, and others.

Furthermore, this is not the first time the NYSE has shown interest in NFTs. In April of last year, the exchange minted six NFTs on Crypto.com’s NFT trading platform commemorating notable listings of tech stocks including Spotify, Snowflake, Unity, DoorDash, Roblox, and Coupang. 

In a statement shared with Bloomberg, the NYSE said that despite its trademark application, the exchange has no near-term plans to offer customers a trading service focused on NFTs. It added that it “regularly considers new products and their impact on our trademarks and protects our intellectual property rights accordingly.”

Notably, the NYSE’s parent company Intercontinental Exchange already runs a cryptocurrency exchange called Bakkt. The exchange has faced several regulatory hurdles, resulting in its stock shedding 90% of its value since debuting in October 2021.

The NYSE is currently the world’s biggest stock exchange in terms of the market capitalization of all its listed companies.

Disclosure: At the time of writing this piece, the author owned ETH and several other cryptocurrencies. 

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