"Forward Industries' Historic Crypto Move: Stocks on the Blockchain"

Solana (SOL) ecosystem's largest institutional treasury holders, Forward Industries, has made a historic move by tokenizing its publicly traded shares directly on the blockchain for the first time. This development has created a new bridge between decentralized finance and traditional markets, attracting the attention of investors.

Investors were excited to learn that SEC registered FWDI shares can now be traded on the Solana blockchain. Forward Industries has thus earned the title of the first publicly traded company to move its shares onto the chain. Tokenized shares stand out as the first example that can be used in DeFi applications.

Supported by significant investors such as Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin Capital, Forward Industries initially planned to use the ticker FORD, but updated the ticker to FWDI due to confusion with the Ford company. The company reportedly holds approximately 6.8 million Solana on its balance sheet, with a net asset value of about $832 million. This figure is even higher than the total of three other major SOL treasury companies.

Tokenized FWDI shares can be used as collateral via the Opening Bell platform developed by Superstate. Shares created with Solana’s SPL token standard can be directly integrated into DeFi protocols on Solana. Forward Industries has stated that these shares can be used as collateral in the lending protocol named Kamino, allowing investors to borrow stablecoins against FWDI. Share price data is provided through the Pyth oracle infrastructure.

The company describes this development as "the first example where regulated publicly traded shares can be used as collateral in a live DeFi market." Kyle Samani, founder of Multicoin Capital, notes that this structure creates a tangible bridge between traditional finance and programmable financial systems. It is stated that the tokenized shares are held by a transfer agency working on behalf of Superstate, and all shareholder transactions, including voting rights, are tracked on-chain.

Forward Industries' historic move stands out as one of the most noteworthy examples of increasing corporate experiments in the field of tokenized stocks. For investors, these developments could inspire fresh opportunities and new strategies.