Paris-based Lise (Lightning Stock Exchange) has become the first company in Europe to be authorized to operate a fully tokenized equity exchange, the company said Thursday.
The exchange, which targets the SME IPO market in France, has received a DLT TSS license from the French financial regulator, ACPR, under the EU’s Pilot Technology Pilot Regime, according to a press release.
The authorization, developed with input from the Banque de France, ESMA, AMF, and the European Central Bank, allows LISE to combine the functions of a multilateral trading facility (MTF) and a central securities depository (CSD) within a digital framework.
HIGH SCHOOL Its shareholders include Caceis (a subsidiary of Crédit Agricole Group), BNP Paribas, and Bpifrance. The Tokenization-friendly exchange is targeting French companies with market capitalizations below €500 million ($582m), and is looking for at least half of issuers to be SMEs with valuations under €200 million.
“This license allows us to operate the first fully tokenized equity exchange in Europe, offering a direct response to real-world funding challenges,” said Mark Kepeneghian, Lise’s CEO.
Lise plans to list the first SME and MidCAP IPO in early 2026, focusing on sectors such as energy, infrastructure, and defense.
For investors, the model can make exposure to smaller European growth companies easier and more transparent. For policymakers, this represents a test case for using blockchain technology to simplify and modernize capital markets.
