OKXICE, a joint venture between cryptocurrency exchange OKX and New York Stock Exchange parent Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), has confirmed it will launch a tokenized stock trading platform on November 23, featuring round-the-clock, 24/7 trading. But what the crypto world sees as a gateway into traditional stock markets hit a wall just before launch: the vast majority of listed companies the platform originally targeted have publicly objected, forcing a sharp reduction in its first listing slate.
OKXICE said the platform will initially offer more than 70 digital assets tied to stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), including tokenized shares of Coinbase, Circle and Robinhood, as well as 59 ETFs issued by Direxion. Most of these underlying names come from the crypto industry or institutions with business ties to crypto firms; traditional blue-chip stocks are almost entirely absent.
The problem lies in issuers' attitudes. OKXICE reportedly initially aimed to include large-cap heavyweights such as McDonald's, Coca-Cola and JPMorgan Chase, but all of these companies objected to their shares being traded in token form on the platform. Statistics show that of the 62 companies the platform initially targeted, 56 raised objections, and only 6 did not publicly object — all six tied to the cryptocurrency industry, including Coinbase, Strategy and Robinhood. Counting companies not on the original list, the total number of listed companies expressing opposition has reached 67.
The legal basis for this joint venture comes from the "innovation exemption" mechanism unveiled by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in September. Under the rules, third-party platforms known as "tokenized securities trading venues" (TSVs) must notify stock issuers of tokenization plans and give them a 30-day objection period; if an issuer objects, the platform may not tokenize its shares. In other words, issuers hold a de facto veto — the key reason OKXICE's listing slate was sharply curtailed.
Ian deBoer, acting CEO of tokenization startup Ondo Finance, said bluntly that the overwhelming majority of companies OKXICE hoped to include have objected, showing that "many stock issuers have not made tokenized stocks a focus," adding that "the existing system works well for them."
Notably, the backlash is not limited to the companies named. Nasdaq has made clear it does not intend to list its own shares for trading on any TSV platform. A Nasdaq spokesperson said that after carefully weighing various factors, the company concluded its shares should not trade on venues that "cannot display the best price in real time, cannot report trade information to the consolidated tape, or cannot provide the transparency investors expect." Still, Nasdaq has not abandoned its tokenization ambitions: the company is building infrastructure to support tokenized stock trading and has invested $100 million (about NT$3.3 billion) in Payward, the parent of crypto exchange Kraken. It also published a design proposal giving listed companies more control over the tokenized form of their shares, and is working with Kraken on an adapter platform to let tokenized stocks move between regulated and on-chain markets.
Despite significant issuer resistance, the crypto industry's push into U.S. stock markets has not slowed. Andrew Cuomo, former New York governor and co-chairman of OKXICE, said in an interview that the platform's launch is part of market evolution, with markets gradually shifting toward round-the-clock trading that both retail and institutional investors will have to adapt to. "There's no going back now," he said, explaining that this refers to consumer demand, and that companies are changing their thinking and beginning to feel "we'd better get ahead of this new technology and this new market structure."
Traditional exchanges are also adjusting. Both the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq plan to launch extended trading hours next month, reflecting how the crypto market's 24-hour trading has changed Wall Street expectations. However, the Managed Funds Association (MFA) wrote to the Trump administration on Tuesday calling for a cautious approach as round-the-clock trading moves forward.
Regulators, meanwhile, are opening the door to new derivatives. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) last week approved stock-linked perpetual futures contracts, which will be jointly regulated by the CFTC and SEC. Perpetuals are leveraged contracts with no expiration date that can trade around the clock, covering periods when stock markets are closed. Prediction market platform Kalshi has begun offering single-stock perpetual contracts tied to more than 50 companies, including McDonald's, SpaceX and Meta Platforms.
Beyond the OKXICE joint venture, Intercontinental Exchange is also working with Trade.xyz, the market operator behind Hyperliquid, on plans to establish a new perpetual futures trading market in the U.S. It would use Hyperliquid's underlying infrastructure and Trade.xyz's products to link stock, stock index, commodity and currency prices, but still awaits regulatory approval.
Resistance is also coming on the legal front. The Capital Markets Alliance — representing Cboe Global Markets, Citadel Securities, trading firms and investor advocacy groups — has asked a federal court in New York to block perpetual futures trading, arguing that regulators failed to follow procedures required by the Administrative Procedure Act when approving the new products. CME Group, the world's largest derivatives exchange, also sued the CFTC earlier this year, arguing that regulators should treat the products as swaps rather than futures contracts.
Most tokenized stock trading currently still takes place on overseas platforms that U.S. investors are legally barred from using; stock issuers typically do not participate in token issuance, and the tokens may not carry shareholder rights such as dividends and voting rights.
Tokenization players are trying to bring the debate back to fundamentals. Carlos Domingo, chairman and CEO of Securitize, said: "The future of tokenized stocks should be built on real stocks, real shareholder rights and the protections investors expect. That is how we lay the right foundation for the next chapter of capital markets."
For investors, the OKXICE launch marks tokenized securities moving from concept to tradable product, but the first batch is concentrated in crypto-related stocks and ETFs, offering limited real diversification. The existence of issuer veto power also means that, in the near term, the supply curve of tokenized stocks will still be determined by listed companies rather than trading platforms. The market's next focus will be how the NYSE's and Nasdaq's extended trading hours take shape, and whether litigation over perpetual contracts affects the pace of regulators' subsequent approvals.
