March 18 (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday approved a Nasdaq NDAQ.O proposal to allow certain stocks to be traded and settled in tokenized form, according to a regulatory filing, marking a step toward integrating blockchain-based settlements into mainstream equity markets.

Exchange operators have been doubling down on their push to capitalize on the boom in tokenization as regulations for cryptocurrencies ease under the Trump administration.

The move would allow investors to trade high-volume stocks as traditional shares or as blockchain-based digital tokens to be settled through the Depository Trust Company.

Nasdaq had filed a proposal with the SEC in September to amend its rules to allow listed stocks and exchange-traded products to trade on its main market in either traditional or tokenized form.

Securities eligible for tokenized trading would initially be limited to stocks in the Russell 1000 Index, as well as exchange-traded funds tracking major benchmarks such as the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100, the filing said.

Rival Intercontinental Exchange ICE.N also said earlier this year that it had developed a platform for trading and on-chain settlement of tokenized securities, for which the NYSE parent is seekingregulatory approvals.