Paxos Securities Settlement Company, LLC (PSSC) has obtained full registration from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to offer clearing and settlement services. This regulatory achievement positions Paxos as the first blockchain entity authorized to function as a central securities depository (CSD) for conventional equities in the United States, placing it alongside traditional post-trade institutions like the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC).
Paxos' new license aligns it with established giants such as DTCC, offering a more efficient option for traditional finance players compared to legacy competitors.
By Olivier Acuna|Edited by Jamie Crawley May 29, 2026, 12:28 p.m. 2 min read
Paxos CEO Charles Cascarilla (Danny Nelson/CoinDesk)Key Highlights:
- Paxos has been granted full registration to provide clearing and settlement services by the SEC.
- This approval addresses a significant hurdle for Paxos' aspirations for institutional tokenization of real-world assets.
- Utilizing blockchain for clearing enables PSSC to settle eligible securities on the same day or almost instantly, thereby eliminating the conventional settlement period and releasing locked capital for institutional players.
This new regulatory status allows Paxos to streamline the process for clearing and settling digital asset transactions tied to traditional equities, as detailed in the SEC’s response to Paxos on March 11.
Paxos, which has already secured licenses from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in the U.S., Singapore's Monetary Authority, and Europe’s FIN-FSA, stated that this central clearinghouse designation permits it to combine regulated stock clearing with its existing white-label infrastructure solutions utilized by companies like PayPal and Mastercard.
The SEC initially provided Paxos with no-action relief in 2019, allowing the firm to test a live settlement pilot in February 2020, which facilitated partnerships with major financial institutions like Bank of America, Credit Suisse, and Societe Generale for daily U.S. equities transactions.
Paxos' newly acquired status allows it to completely bypass traditional settlement systems. Using blockchain technology for clearing means that PSSC can finalize eligible securities transactions on the same day or nearly instantly, thus removing the conventional settlement window and unblocking capital for institutional participants.
In the conventional capital markets, stock trades occur within milliseconds, but the final settlement, which involves the transfer of cash for legal ownership of assets, is conducted through a centralized clearing house, usually the DTCC.
Although U.S. equity markets transitioned to a T+1 (one business day) standard settlement cycle in 2024, the existing financial infrastructure still experiences delays, trapped collateral, and counterparty risks.