Crypto brokerage firm Alpaca has raised $135 million to expand the infrastructure behind tokenized stocks. The company at one point cleared or custodied roughly 94% of all tokenized U.S. equities, and it now holds over $1.5 billion in underlying stocks for its partners.
The $135 million raise
The funding round closed this week, according to a statement from the firm. Alpaca didn't name the investors or disclose the valuation. The money is earmarked for building out the plumbing that lets tokenized stock products trade on crypto exchanges — settlement, custody, and the links between traditional brokerages and blockchain rails.
A dominant position in tokenized equities
Alpaca's role in the tokenized stock market is hard to overstate. At its peak, the firm handled nearly all of the clearing and custody for tokenized U.S. equities — a category that includes products like tokenized shares of Apple, Tesla, and S&P 500 ETFs. That dominance means the company's infrastructure underpins a large chunk of the market, even if most retail traders never see the Alpaca name.
The $1.5 billion in underlying stocks Alpaca now holds for partners is up sharply from earlier this year, though the firm didn't provide a precise timeline for the growth.
What tokenized stocks need
Tokenized stocks are a niche but growing corner of crypto. They let users trade traditional equities on blockchain-based exchanges, often 24/7, without leaving the crypto ecosystem. But the model requires real stock purchases on the back end — someone has to buy the actual shares and hold them in a traditional brokerage account. That's where Alpaca comes in. The firm acts as the bridge, handling the messy parts: KYC, trade execution, custody, and reconciliation with legacy market infrastructure.
The $135 million raise suggests the company sees room to scale that bridge. It also signals that investors are betting on tokenized stocks as a lasting product, not a fad.
Next steps
Alpaca hasn't detailed exactly how it will deploy the new capital. The firm said the funds will go toward "infrastructure expansion" and "partner integrations," but didn't name specific exchanges or protocols. The raise comes as tokenized stock volumes have been climbing, and as more crypto exchanges list the products. Whether Alpaca can hold onto its 94% market share as competitors emerge is an open question — one the company now has $135 million to answer.
