Broadcom, Verizon among nine companies objecting to OKX-ICE tokenized shares
In brief
- Nine listed companies objected to tokenized versions of their shares on a proposed OKX-ICE platform.
- Broadcom, Verizon, UnitedHealth Group, CoreWeave and Rocket Lab are among the objectors, per the notice.
- The OKX and ICE notice gave no reason for the objections.
- The SEC's Sept. 17 innovation exemption requires issuer notice and a chance to object, per Cointelegraph.
- OKX did not respond to Cointelegraph's request for comment by publication time.
Who objected, and what the notice left out
The full list, per the Thursday notice by OKX and ICE, covers Cerebras Systems, AppLovin, Applied Digital, Rocket Lab, CoreWeave, Verizon Communications, Applied Optoelectronics, Broadcom and UnitedHealth Group. It didn't say why.
That's the gap.
The objection process exists because of the SEC. Under the regulator's Sept. 17 innovation exemption announcement, as Cointelegraph described it, tokenized venues have to give issuers written notice and an opportunity to object before listing third-party tokenized stocks. Cointelegraph framed the objections as a potential hurdle for tokenized stocks and a test of whether crypto platforms can build blockchain-based markets for public company shares without issuer cooperation.
OKX hadn't responded to Cointelegraph's request for comment by publication time.
What the market side is saying
Robin Nordnes, CEO of trading validation platform Raiku, told Cointelegraph the issue isn't the chain itself.
“Issuers aren’t objecting to the blockchain. They’re objecting to not knowing what happens to their price once it trades there,” Robin Nordnes, CEO of trading validation platform Raiku, told Cointelegraph.
Nordnes added that on a public chain, the validator building the block sets the order (and until desks can measure their distance to that point, he said, best execution stays a promise rather than a number).
Misha Putiatin, co-founder of collateral markets platform Symbiotic, told Cointelegraph that companies need to see upside and a track record of efficient pricing, and that more real-world data would help assess the benefits and risks. He pointed to other institutional tokenization initiatives, such as the DTCC's tokenization services, as something that could instill more confidence in tokenized offerings.
Consent, not tokenization
CoinShares senior research associate Luke Nolan said the objection doesn't amount to a rejection of tokenization generally; it's mostly against being tokenized without consent. He called the concerns valid, noting that market participants have previously exploited specific market mechanics to cause squeezes or short-term swings in the underlying asset's price.
Capital is still moving onchain, though. More than $754 million moved onchain over the prior 30 days, bringing the total across stablecoins and tokenized assets to $320 billion, according to OnchainBenchmark data cited by Cointelegraph.
Frequently asked questions
Why were companies able to object to the OKX-ICE tokenized stock plan?
Cointelegraph reported that under the SEC's Sept. 17 innovation exemption announcement, tokenized venues must give issuers written notice and an opportunity to object before listing third-party tokenized stocks. Nine listed companies used that process to formally object.
Did the companies explain why they objected to tokenization?
No. The Thursday notice by OKX and ICE listing the nine objecting companies did not disclose the reason behind the objections, according to Cointelegraph. OKX had not responded to Cointelegraph's request for comment by publication time.
Are the objections a rejection of tokenization itself?
CoinShares senior research associate Luke Nolan said the objection does not amount to a rejection of tokenization generally, but is mostly against being tokenized without consent. Raiku CEO Robin Nordnes said issuers are objecting to uncertainty over what happens to their price once it trades onchain, not to the blockchain.
