U.S. Stock Tokenization Wave Faces Corporate Backlash!
According to the latest notice published by OKXICE on the 15th, nine U.S. companies—including Broadcom, CoreWeave, Verizon, and UnitedHealth—have formally objected to their stocks being tokenized and traded on the OKXICE platform. OKXICE is a joint venture between cryptocurrency exchange OKX and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange. It had originally planned to bring 63 U.S. stocks onto the platform, offering around-the-clock trading on the blockchain.
9 Companies Say No! New SEC Rules Give Issuers Veto Power
On September 17, the U.S. SEC introduced a temporary “Innovation Exemption” framework, allowing eligible trading platforms to offer tokenized stock trading, provided the tokens carry the same shareholder rights as the underlying stocks, including dividend and voting rights.
In addition, platforms seeking to tokenize shares of third-party companies must notify the issuing companies at least 30 days in advance. If a company objects within the prescribed period, the platform may not offer trading in the relevant tokens under the exemption framework.
OKXICE originally announced 63 stocks as potential listings on October 4. Eight of their issuers have now objected, while Cerebras Systems, which was not on the initial list, has also filed an objection notice. Importantly, these objections apply only to OKXICE and do not mean that tokenization of the companies’ stocks is prohibited across the board.
Why the objections? Concerns over distorted prices and fragmented liquidity
According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, optical communications equipment maker Applied Optoelectronics said it could not assess how tokenized trading would affect its share price, liquidity, or price volatility. Another concern is that if a third party launches stock tokens without authorization, investors may mistakenly believe the issuing company has participated in or endorsed the product.
U.S. market maker Citadel Securities has likewise warned that stock tokenization could fragment market liquidity and weaken regulatory protections. Although Nasdaq is actively developing a tokenized securities business, it has also chosen not to allow its own shares to trade on third-party platforms under the SEC’s current exemption framework.
Stock tokenization market surpasses $3.4 billion, growing more than fourfold this year
Despite companies’ cautious stance, the stock tokenization market continues to expand.
According to RWA.xyz data as of October 18, the distributed value of tokenized stocks reached $3.41 billion, up 10.97% over the past 30 days. Compared with approximately $680 million at the start of the year, the market has grown to around five times its initial size.
OKXICE plans to use OKX’s X Layer blockchain and liquidity pools powered by automated market makers (AMMs), which require identity verification, to let investors trade tokenized U.S. stocks using USDC, USDT, or USDG.
Other potential listings that have not objected include major companies such as Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, and Amazon. However, not objecting does not mean these companies have formally partnered with or endorsed the platform, and OKXICE has not yet announced an official trading launch date.
The challenges facing stock tokenization are no longer limited to whether blockchain technology can support round-the-clock trading. They also involve listed companies’ control over shareholder rights, market pricing, trading transparency, and brand reputation. If more companies choose to exercise their right to object, this could slow the expansion of some third-party tokenization platforms, but it does not mean the broader real-world asset (RWA) tokenization trend is reversing.
“Tokenized U.S. stocks hit a wall! Broadcom, CoreWeave, and seven other giants reject OKXICE listings—why is Wall Street saying no?” This article was first published on BlockTempo.