Centrifuge CEO Bhaji Illuminati says the market is getting pickier about tokens

For years, launching a token was the default move for any crypto project with a pulse. Centrifuge CEO Bhaji Illuminati thinks that era is ending. Speaking with Bloomberg, Illuminati said the market is becoming more critical about when tokens are actually appropriate. Her company is not just talking about it. Centrifuge is in the middle of replacing its CFG token with company shares. From governance token to tokenized equity The shift runs through a governance proposal called CP172. It was approved in September 2026 with 98% backing from the Centrifuge community. Under the plan, CFG can be converted into shares of a re-registered Cayman Islands entity. Eligible token holders go through a subscription process to make the swap from token to equity. Centrifuge describes this as a move to a single value-accrual mechanism. In plain terms, there will no longer be a split between what the token captures and what the company captures. Value flows to one place. Why institutions kept walking away The motivation is practical rather than philosophical. According to the research behind the Bloomberg coverage, institutional due diligence flagged Centrifuge’s token-governed structure as a risk. Th...