Tokenized Securities Should Not Be a New Asset Class, Says Plume Network's Legal Advisor

Tokenized securities should not be classified as a new asset class, according to Salman Banaei, the chief legal advisor of Plume Network. According to PANews, Banaei made this statement during a hearing at the U.S. House Financial Services Committee. He argued that regulation should be driven by the economic nature and risks of financial products rather than the technology used. Therefore, he suggested that existing regulations be amended to incorporate new technological realities into a mature regulatory framework. Banaei highlighted that using public blockchains and on-chain compliance tools, such as Plume's built-in protocol-level anti-money laundering screening, can significantly enhance market transparency, reduce costs, and decrease reliance on intermediaries while maintaining or exceeding current regulatory standards. He also warned that global competition in tokenized infrastructure is accelerating, with regions like Hong Kong, Singapore, and the UAE actively positioning themselves. If the U.S. faces regulatory delays due to policy uncertainty, it risks losing its leadership in the digital transformation of global capital markets, allowing this strategic opportunity to shift to foreign competitors with different geopolitical objectives.