Figure unveils onchain equity network aimed at remaking stock trading and lending

Figure Technology Solutions (NASDAQ: FIGR) is pushing deeper into public-market infrastructure with the launch of what it calls the On-Chain Public Equity Network, a platform designed to issue and trade shares natively on a blockchain rather than as tokenized replicas of traditional securities.

The new network, dubbed OPEN, not to be confused with Telegram’s The Open Network, will allow companies to list equity directly on Figure’s Provenance blockchain, with shares recorded onchain and traded through Figure’s regulated alternative trading system.

Unlike many tokenized stock offerings that provide synthetic exposure or custodial wrappers around existing shares, Figure says OPEN equities represent actual ownership and are registered on the blockchain itself.

Figure plans to be the first issuer on the platform, following a registration filing late last year for a secondary equity offering that would trade on OPEN. The company said those blockchain-native shares will be exchangeable with its Nasdaq-listed stock, allowing liquidity to move between them.

Mike Cagney, Figure’s co-founder and executive chairman, said the effort is aimed at reducing the cost and complexity embedded in today’s equity market structure. “We’re really cutting everything out,” Cagney said in an interview with Bloomberg, pointing to a system that reduces reliance on central securities depositories, custodial brokers, and other intermediaries.

Direct onchain stock lending

Beyond trading, OPEN will also support direct stock lending onchain, allowing shareholders to lend or borrow shares through a decentralized protocol called Democratized Prime.

Today, stock lending is largely intermediated by prime brokers, with limited transparency around pricing and availability. Figure says moving that activity onchain could enable real-time settlement and collateralization, while redirecting more of the economics of stock lending back to shareholders.

Market makers, including Jump Trading Group, are preparing to provide liquidity on the platform, while BitGo has signed on to offer qualified custody for participants that require it, according to a Wednesday release.

Long-term equity bet

Figure’s push into tokenized equities comes as investors and analysts assess how much revenue the effort could ultimately generate.

In a note published this week, analysts at Bernstein raised their price target on Figure’s stock and named it their “best idea” for 2026, pointing primarily to growth in the firm’s tokenized credit business while describing equities as longer-term optionality.

Bernstein said Figure’s core marketplace, which originated billions of dollars in onchain credit last year, is already tracking ahead of expectations, and that new products like onchain equities could expand the firm’s addressable market over time rather than drive near-term earnings.

Figure shares were trading for nearly $57 on Wednesday, according to Google Finance data, roughly 5% below their recent high near $60, with Bernstein’s $72 price target implying about 27% upside.

Figure (FIGR) stock price chart. Source: Google Finance

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