Cathie Wood tokenizes billion-dollar venture fund for first time

Cathie Wood just put one of her biggest funds on the blockchain. ARK Invest announced the tokenization of its ARK Venture Fund, a closed-end interval fund with roughly $1.3 billion in net assets, marking the first time the firm has issued tokenized interests in one of its investment vehicle.

The fund, which trades under the ticker ARKVX, will have its tokenized shares issued on Ethereum through Securitize’s infrastructure. Investors who pass KYC and AML checks can subscribe using USDC with a minimum buy-in of just $500, a remarkably low entry point for a fund that holds stakes in SpaceX, OpenAI, and Stripe.

What the deal actually looks like

The tokenized interests represent the same rights as traditional shares in the fund. BNY Mellon continues to handle custody, and the quarterly liquidity feature stays intact, with up to 5% of shares eligible for repurchase each quarter under the fund’s interval structure.

There’s a 2% subscription fee baked in. ARK has also flagged potential expansion to other blockchain networks down the line, though Ethereum gets the first shot.

One important caveat: there is no secondary market for trading these tokenized interests. Investors are still locked into the fund’s quarterly redemption windows.

The move followed SEC approval for establishing a tokenized share class within the fund, which removed what had been the most significant regulatory barrier.

Why this fund, and why now

About 62% of the ARK Venture Fund’s holdings are allocated to private investments as of June 30, 2026, giving investors exposure to some of the most sought-after private companies in tech. The fund’s Class D shares posted a 20.35% return in Q2 2026, comfortably outpacing the S&P 500’s 15.20% gain over the same period.

ARK’s relationship with Securitize isn’t new. The firm invested approximately $10 million in Securitize in late 2025. Securitize has become one of the go-to platforms for tokenizing real-world assets, working across the spectrum from private credit to equity fund structures.

Wood herself has framed the initiative as part of a broader mission to democratize access to innovative investment opportunities. The $500 minimum and stablecoin onramp support that framing by meaningfully lowering the barrier to entry.

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