Forward Industries, the largest corporate holder of Solana’s native token, has taken a significant step toward blending traditional finance with decentralized markets by issuing its public equity directly on a blockchain.
The company announced Thursday that its SEC-registered shares are now live on the Solana network through Superstate’s Opening Bell platform. The move makes Forward Industries the first public company to place its equity onchain in a way that allows the shares to be used directly within decentralized finance applications.
Forward Industries, which trades under the ticker FWDI, is backed by major crypto investors including Galaxy Digital, Jump Crypto, and Multicoin Capital. The firm first revealed plans to tokenize its stock in September, initially under the name FORD before changing the ticker to avoid confusion with Ford Motor Company.
According to data, Forward currently holds about 6.8 million SOL tokens, giving it a net asset value of roughly $832 million. That balance makes it the largest Solana-focused digital asset treasury, surpassing the next three largest firms combined.
The tokenization is powered by Superstate’s Opening Bell, a platform launched in May 2025 that allows companies to issue and trade real, non-synthetic shares on blockchain networks. On Solana, those shares use the SPL token standard, while Ethereum-based issuances rely on ERC-20 tokens.
Because FWDI is issued as an SPL token, it can plug directly into Solana’s decentralized finance ecosystem. One early use case highlighted by Forward is the ability to post tokenized FWDI shares as collateral on the Kamino lending protocol, enabling holders to borrow stablecoins against their equity. Real-time pricing for these integrations is supported by Pyth’s onchain data feeds.
Forward described the development as the first instance of regulated public equity being used as collateral in a live DeFi market. Kyle Samani, founder of Multicoin Capital and chairman of Forward Industries, said the structure creates a practical link between public markets and programmable financial systems.
Behind the scenes, the shares are held by a transfer agent under Superstate’s name. This setup allows ownership records to be updated onchain while maintaining compliance, and it enables shares to move from a traditional brokerage account to an approved Solana wallet. Superstate also supports voting rights for tokenized FWDI shareholders, preserving key aspects of corporate governance.
The announcement comes as interest in tokenized equities continues to grow. Galaxy Digital tokenized its GLXY shares using the same platform in September, and other firms are exploring similar approaches. Unlike many real-world asset projects that rely on wrapped tokens or synthetic exposure, Superstate’s model directly links token transfers to the official shareholder register, making the onchain tokens legally equivalent to conventional shares.
Competition in the space is also increasing. Securitize is preparing to launch its Stocks on Securitize offering, which will allow public companies to issue real equity onchain. Superstate, meanwhile, plans to roll out Direct Issuance, a feature that would let firms issue new tokenized securities without a traditional underwriter.
