- Yakovenko says public companies objecting to tokenization should go private.
- 33 public companies are opting out of the OKXICE TSV.
- Tokenization volumes hit $11.31 billion on the Robinhood Chain in September.
The co-founder of Solana, Anatoly Yakovenko, contends that U.S. public corporations must evolve alongside digital assets. Those that refuse to allow their shares to be traded on-chain should withdraw from public markets entirely, he said.
At the moment, tokenized stock trading is absolutely booming, but a growing list of household-name companies want absolutely nothing to do with it. Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Qualcomm, Caterpillar, McDonald’s, Apple, Western Digital, and Alphabet are just some of the firms that have declined to have their equities tokenized on OKXICE, the joint venture between OKX and Intercontinental Exchange.
More than 30 companies are against the stock trading on OKXICE
About 33 major public companies are drawing a hard line against crypto-native stock trading. Heavyweights from Wells Fargo, Coca-Cola and JPMorgan to tech giants like Dell, Advanced Micro Devices, Intel, AppLovin, and CoreWeave are opting out of the OKXICE TSV.
The SEC’s Innovation Exemption Order, enacted in September, formally mandates that tokenized securities venues must provide advance notice to unaffiliated issuers. The companies have only 30 days to raise any written objection regarding trading on a specific platform.
According to Dave Hendricks, CEO of SEC-registered digital transfer agent Vertalo, the current wave of objections indicates that the regulatory guardrails are functional. He explained that the 30-day window was explicitly engineered by the SEC to preserve issuer agency, and corporations are actively exercising that right.
The SEC’s exemption provides a limited framework for testing tokenized securities, but doesn’t eliminate all regulatory requirements. Its five-year lifespan provides market participants with a chance to test blockchain-based trading under the new framework.
But the issuer objection mechanism is a major obstacle for venues looking to list U.S. stocks. Even if investors want access to a company’s tokenized shares, the platform cannot proceed under this framework if the issuer objects.
Although most firms have yet to disclose their reasons for opposing OKXICE. Mirza Uddin, chief operating officer of Injective, nonetheless says firms like Goldman Sachs and Microsoft see more problems than benefits in a token beyond their control, especially one that operates around the clock with ambiguous voting rights.
He maintained that industry needs to convince issuers that tokenization offers real advantages, because without that, progress will continue outside the U.S. while regulators debate whether to allow it.
Similarly, ClearStreet analyst Owen Lau also said companies just don’t see the full value of tokenization yet, though he anticipates eventual corporate adoption. “Some companies will say yes or will not object to this because of the benefits … the expanded investor base, 24/7 [access], increased distribution channel. Some of the beaten-down stocks with low trading volume could be good candidates,” he said.
On the other hand, Carlos Domingo, CEO of the tokenization company Securitise, pointed out that issuers’ concerns were justified, as it was quite natural for corporations to worry about pricing, investor protection, and shareholders’ rights in these new markets.
“There’s an important education process underway, and issuers should understand that they have different options for participating in tokenization, including issuer-sponsored approaches,” he said.
OKXICE, too, has so far characterised the opt-outs as quite natural. Its co-chairman, Andrew Cuomo, has said they had expected many companies to observe and wait until the initiative progressed further.
Aside from OKXICE, TSV LLC, and Perpetuals.com have also submitted notices of intent to launch blockchain-based Tokenized Securities Venues (TSVs) under the U.S. SEC Innovation Exemption.
Tokenization volumes rose to $11.31 billion in September on Robinhood Chain
Yakovenko’s view is that firms should embrace the advantages of a public listing and the obligations that come with it. He asserted that opposition to the way their stocks are traded contradicts their decision to list them.
Although he believes the issuer objections do not imply any problem with tokenization, but just that issuers want the benefits of listing without making some changes that come with the evolving trading system.
Nevertheless, the corporate resistance did little to curb the investor enthusiasm. The volume of tokenized equity trades on Robinhood Chain grew from $526 million in July to $2.21 billion in August, and finally exploded to $11.31 billion in September.
Non-crypto markets also represented 36.5% of Hyperliquid’s perpetuals volume in the quarter, up from 32.7% a quarter earlier. At the same time, tokenized stocks recorded the fastest growth among asset categories on Solana.
The growing divide raises questions about whether traditional companies will eventually embrace blockchain-based trading or continue to restrict unaffiliated platforms from offering tokens linked to their shares.
The crypto industry broadly calls for open financial markets, and Yakovenko’s words also suggest it will likely be a long time before tokenization platforms can address issuers’ concerns about shareholder rights, market oversight and investor protection.
If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter.
FAQs
Why does Anatoly Yakovenko want companies to embrace tokenized stocks?
Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko argues that public companies should accept on-chain trading as part of the obligations of being publicly listed. He believes companies that oppose tokenized trading should consider going private.
Why are major U.S. companies opposing tokenized stock trading?
Companies may have concerns about shareholder voting rights, investor protection, price discrepancies, and trading outside traditional market hours. Some also worry about losing control over how third-party platforms distribute tokens linked to their shares.
How fast is tokenized stock trading growing?
Tokenized equity trading volume on Robinhood Chain rose from $526 million in July to $2.21 billion in August and $11.31 billion in September, according to the figures cited in the article. This growth highlights increasing activity in blockchain-based equity markets.
Disclaimer. The information provided is not trading advice. Cryptopolitan.com holds no liability for any investments made based on the information provided on this page. We strongly recommend independent research and/or consultation with a qualified professional before making any investment decisions.
Nellius Irene
Nellius is a Business Management and IT graduate with five years of experience in the cryptocurrency industry. She is also a graduate of Bitcoin Dada. Nellius has contributed to leading media publications, including BanklessTimes, Cryptobasic, and Riseup Media.
