How the tokens work
The design is simple. Alpaca holds the underlying shares, and the token on Base stands for them. That custody split — real equities at a regulated firm, a digital claim on the network — is the standard shape of tokenized securities. What's less usual here is the rails. This is Coinbase's own Layer 2, so the whole loop, from custody to trading, stays inside one company.
The DeFi angle
These tokens aren't meant to sit idle in a wallet. They're designed to be used in DeFi on Base — lending, borrowing
