Cryptoupdated 2h ago2 min read
Broadcom, Verizon, UnitedHealth Refuse OKXICE Tokenized Stock Listing as Nasdaq Blocks Trading
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Nine U.S. issuers, including Broadcom and Verizon, object to OKXICE tokenized trading. Nasdaq announced it would opt out under the SEC framework alongside issuer pushback.
6 outlets told this the same way.
OKXICE meets issuer veto
OKXICE, the OKX and Intercontinental Exchange joint venture preparing a tokenized-stock trading venue, faced formal pushback as nine U.S.-listed companies including Broadcom, Verizon and UnitedHealth refused to have their shares listed on the planned platform. OKXICE had proposed a 24-hour tokenized trading service for 63 U.S.-listed companies under the SEC’s five-year temporary innovation exemption, and the venue planned to use blockchain liquidity pools to trade stocks and settle transactions in stablecoins.
Nasdaq also said it would not permit tokenized trading of its own shares under the SEC framework, and the objections were disclosed in an October 15 public notice from OKXICE. TD Securities said the SEC action is based on a five-year temporary innovation exemption, meaning policy could still change and could delay financial institutions’ infrastructure investment and corporate participation.
Why companies objected
OKXICE’s October 15 notice named Broadcom, Verizon and UnitedHealth among the nine objecting issuers, and the notice also listed AppLovin, Applied Digital, Rocket Lab, CoreWeave and Applied Optoelectronics. Nasdaq’s spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal that Nasdaq does not want its shares trading on a venue that does not display best prices in real time or report to the consolidated tape.
TD Securities analysts led by Reid Noch said conversations with dozens of issuers showed "little interest in tokenizing their shares outside a small group of crypto-adjacent companies," and the analysts said several issuers approached the firm with significant concerns after discovering the framework. TD Securities identified the framework’s reliance on temporary exemptive relief, rather than permanent rules, as its largest hurdle, and the analysts said a future commission could reverse the approach and complicate infrastructure investment.
What happens next
OKXICE’s design paired each tokenized stock against USDC, USDG or USDT in permissioned Uniswap v4 pools, with access gated by a nontransferable identity token and a registered broker-dealer holding one underlying share for every token outstanding.
The SEC order issued Sept. 17 and published in the Federal Register on Sept. 22 as 91 Fed. Reg. 60168 required a venue to notify an issuer before listing tokens created by an unaffiliated third party, wait at least 30 calendar days, and honor a written objection filed within that window.
The exemption runs until Sept. 17, 2031, and it caps activity through limits on symbols and trading volume, with Tier 1 securities limited to 75 symbols per venue and trading equal to 0.25% of the underlying stock's average daily volume in the prior month.
OKXICE has not announced a launch date, while Securitize began listing U.S. equities on Solana on Oct. 8, and the next signals were whether more issuers object as other venues file notices and whether the SEC’s eventual permanent rulemaking keeps or tightens the 30-day opt-out.