A new research report from VerifyInvestor.com, powered by tZERO Group, Inc., reveals that accredited investors are actively preparing to deploy capital, with growing interest in digital asset securities. The report, titled The Accredited Investor Outlook 2026, draws on survey responses from more than 200 verified accredited investors across the United States collected in April 2026.
The survey highlights a market in motion: more than three-quarters of respondents (77%) plan to make an investment within the next six months, with nearly half anticipating investment activity within three months. Real estate (66%) and private equity/venture capital (61%) led investment category interest, while digital asset securities attracted interest from 27% of respondents—exceeding several traditional alternative categories including infrastructure, hedge funds, and energy-focused investments.
Fundamentals and trust drive allocations, with expected returns ranking as the top evaluation criterion (70%). However, the survey reveals a more nuanced decision-making framework: management quality (50.5%), downside protection and risk mitigation (49%), and sponsor track record (48.5%) all ranked nearly as highly as projected returns. This suggests investors are conducting increasingly sophisticated due diligence, prioritizing credibility and execution capability alongside financial performance. Liquidity potential ranked among the lowest evaluation criteria at 18%, indicating that many investors remain willing to commit capital to longer-duration opportunities when underlying fundamentals are compelling.
The report identifies tokenized securities at an inflection point. While only 11% of respondents described themselves as very familiar with tokenized securities, 27% expressed interest in digital asset securities as an investment category. This gap points to education as the primary barrier to broader adoption rather than a lack of demand. The report identifies investor awareness as progressing through three stages: curiosity, education, and adoption, with many investors currently transitioning from the first to the second.
“tZERO has pioneered the regulated end-to-end infrastructure, issuance, trading, custody, and settlement, that makes digital asset securities accessible to investors in a compliant, institutional-grade way,” said Alan Konevsky, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of tZERO. “Reports like this one reflect what we're seeing on the ground: accredited investors are actively looking to deploy readily available capital, and interest in digital asset securities is growing. Our platform exists to connect that demand with the infrastructure to act on it.”
To support that transition, VerifyInvestor.com is hosting a live webinar on June 23, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. EST, titled “The New SEC Direction on Digital Assets: What Accredited Investors Need to Know.” Registration is available at https://lnkd.in/g8DeCXzg. The event will feature expert panelists discussing recent SEC guidance on tokenized securities and its implications for private markets.
“VerifyInvestor.com is one of the most established accredited investor verification platforms. Our latest report highlights that as private markets continue to evolve, having a verified, trusted investor base is foundational—for issuers, for platforms, and for the integrity of the market,” said Jenny Shields, VP of Operations at VerifyInvestor.com. “VerifyInvestor.com exists to make that compliance seamless, so that when investors are ready to act, there are no barriers to participation.”
The findings underscore the active and self-directed nature of today's accredited investor, while highlighting a meaningful and growing openness to digital asset securities. tZERO has built regulated, end-to-end blockchain-based financial infrastructure over more than a decade to support this emerging asset class. The full report is available for download here.
