Plume Network, a modular layer 2 blockchain purpose-built for real-world assets (RWA), becomes an SEC-regulated transfer agent, streamlining the issuance, transfer, and management of tokenized securities.
As a registered transfer agent, Plume will manage digital securities and shareholder records directly on-chain and support interoperability with the Deposit and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) payment network, according to a press release shared with CoinDesk.
Additionally, it facilitates a variety of use cases, including on-chain IPOs, small-cap capital raising, and registered funds. Most notably, the technology aims to reduce tokenization timelines from months to just weeks through smart contract automation.
Plume's registration provides much-needed regulatory infrastructure for institutions such as BlackRock, Fidelity, and Apollo seeking compliant on-chain asset transfers.
“At Plume, we believe that transfer agent regulation exists to protect the rights of our investors as shareholders. With this fully on-chain transfer agent protocol, we are streamlining the issuance of digital securities with built-in partnerships with regulators,” said Chris Yin, CEO and co-founder of Plume.
“The crypto industry has been searching for a viable bridge between the speed of DeFi and the security measures of TradFi. With the issuance of this license, Plume becomes the ideal solution for this exploration,” Yin added.
A transfer agent in the traditional sense is a financial institution that maintains official records of a company's shareholders, manages changes in ownership, issues stock certificates, and processes dividend and interest payments.
Blockchain transfer agents such as Plume leverage distributed ledger technology to perform similar functions on-chain, providing a secure, immutable, and transparent digital record of asset ownership and transfer.
Plume's accomplishments are the result of active collaboration with regulatory agencies, including contributions to the debate surrounding the GENIUS Act. The announcement follows comments from SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce last week in which she expressed the regulator's openness to engaging with issuers of real-world asset tokenization projects.
First product rollout likely in Q1 2026
Even as the broader regulatory framework continues to evolve, Plume's regulated transfer agents remain operational, allowing interested funds to immediately engage with Plume's infrastructure.
Building on this foundation, Plume plans to launch its first product offering, including the Nest Protocol Vault, in the first quarter of 2026. Within the Plume Network, Nest is one of the key protocols focused on staking mechanisms for Real World Assets (RWA) protocols.
Nest allows fund managers to create vaults backed by regulated financial products. Users can then deposit their stablecoins into these vaults and earn revenue from the underlying real-world assets in a permissionless manner.
Targeting 40 act funds
Plume said it has already received interest from an SEC-registered investment fund (40 Act Fund). Additionally, although regulatory challenges such as asset custody issues remain hurdles, the company expects these challenges to be alleviated as the SEC proposes new rules by 2026 and finalizes them by 2027.
40 Act funds are publicly offered pooled investment vehicles, such as open-end mutual funds, closed-end funds, and unit investment trusts, registered under the Investment Act of 1940.
This timing coincides with the broader market transition to on-chain securities, and Plume is at the forefront of this transition.
“This license will enable Plume to support the transition of off-chain securities to compliant digital formats, particularly 40 Act funds, which are the traditional backbone of the over $39 trillion U.S. asset management industry,” the company told CoinDesk.
Plume is also seeking additional licenses, including alternative trading systems (ATS) and broker-dealer registration, to develop a fully compliant on-chain capital markets infrastructure for the 40 ACT funds.
