France has launched Lise (Lightning Stock Exchange), “Europe’s first” natively tokenised stock exchange, operating 24/7 and integrating trading and settlement on blockchain.
The launch followed authorisation from the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR), Banque de France, the French securities commission (AMF), the European Securities and Markets Authority, the Eurosystem and the European Central Bank.
Lise, the first European infrastructure to offer full integration of market and post-trade functions on blockchain, is built on distributed ledger technology. Supported by Caceis (Crédit Agricole Group), BNP Paribas and Bpifrance, Lise is part of a market infrastructure designed to give Europe’s SMEs and mid-caps better access to capital.
It also marks a key step for the EU’s distributed ledger technology pilot regime allowing financial institutions to explore blockchain-based market infrastructures under a controlled regulatory framework.
The first IPOs on the Lise platform are scheduled for early 2026.
“BlackRock CEO Larry Fink’s recent statements in major media are further signals that the tokenisation movement is gaining global momentum. France, already ahead in this field, continues to push forward. With Lise, we are going even further: we are building a truly tokenised infrastructure and providing a concrete response to the challenges raised by the European Union, particularly regarding the connection between savings and the real economy,” said Mark Kepeneghian, CEO of Lise.
