Tesla and SpaceX join 56 issuers objecting to ICE-OKX tokenized stock venue

What happened

Tesla and SpaceX, the two companies led by Elon Musk, are among six additional issuers that have told the ICE-OKX tokenized stock venture to keep their shares off its platform. Amazon, Netflix, Lam Research and SoFi Technologies filed objections alongside them, according to an updated OKXICE TSV notice dated Monday and reported by Decrypt. The additions lift the total number of objecting companies to 56.

The latest group extends a roster that has grown quickly. A revised notice dated Oct. 30, reported by Unchained, listed 50 objectors after Nvidia, Costco and Nike arrived with nine other companies. Comparing that notice with the Oct. 28 version, which named 38 companies, showed 12 additions in two days: CrowdStrike, Corning, Micron, IREN, USA Rare Earth, Bloom Energy, Nike, Nvidia, Palo Alto Networks, Costco, Reddit and Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

Those names joined earlier objectors including Microsoft, Alphabet, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, as well as Walmart, Eli Lilly and Cigna, all of which had appeared on the Oct. 28 list. The venue's notices do not explain any company's reasons for objecting, and they still contain no date for trading to begin. Apple is among the few megacap names absent from the list.

Why it matters

The filings matter because of how the venue is permitted to operate. Under the SEC order it relies on, a timely written objection blocks OKXICE TSV from listing a third-party tokenized version of that company's stock, giving issuers a direct check on how their shares are wrapped and traded. Each addition narrows the set of large-cap names the venue could offer. The objection binds only this venue, however: the notice says tokenized shares on OKXICE TSV are not restricted to trading there, and that the venue may also list shares tokenized by the issuers themselves, though it does not identify any. Andrew Cuomo, the venture's co-chair, told reporters on an Oct. 29 call, before the latest additions, that "you'll have a lot of companies that take the position I want to wait and see," and said a full-page Wall Street Journal ad urging CEOs to opt out meant "game on."

What the data shows

The objector count has moved from nine on Oct. 15 to 38 on Oct. 28, 50 on Oct. 30 and 56 on Monday. The venue's notice also states that it "is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission" and that "unfair and unreasonably discriminatory denials or limitations of access" for its participants "are not subject to SEC review." It says the venue has no policies for maximal extractable value, the practice of reordering pending transactions for profit, though it argues that permissioning every participant, surveilling trading, revoking access tokens and requiring a minimum amount per trade "substantially mitigate" the risk without eliminating it. The soulbound token contract was audited internally but not by external auditors, and the notice says it is uncertain whether tokens in self-custodied wallets would count as customer property or be covered by the Securities Investor Protection Corporation if the broker-dealer behind them failed.

Background

OKXICE LLC is owned 50% by Intercontinental Exchange, the parent of the New York Stock Exchange, and 50% by OKX affiliate OKC USA Holding. It plans to run permissioned Uniswap v4 liquidity pools on OKX's XLayer network around the clock, pairing tokenized equities with stablecoins such as USDC; traders must clear identity and sanctions checks and hold a non-transferable "soulbound" access token that the venue's smart contracts verify before each transaction. Decrypt reported that the SEC unveiled its innovation exemption in September after the Clarity Act stalled in the Senate, and that companies get 30 days to object in writing. Unchained reported that the order was published in the Federal Register on Sept. 22.

What to watch

Attention now turns to whether more issuers file objections before a launch date is announced, and whether the venture ends up listing stocks tokenized by the companies themselves. How the SEC treats a venue that says it is not registered with the agency while relying on its exemption also remains to be seen.

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