Nine major U.S. companies, including Verizon, Broadcom, and UnitedHealth, have formally objected to having their shares traded on a planned tokenized stock venue from OKX and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), according to people familiar with the matter. The pushback lands as the two exchanges work to build out a platform that would put corporate equities on a blockchain.
The objections, first reported earlier Wednesday, highlight a growing tension between crypto trading venues and the companies whose stock they want to list in token form. For OKX and ICE, the resistance from blue-chip names is an early hurdle for a product that doesn't yet have a launch date.
Which companies pushed back
Verizon, Broadcom, and UnitedHealth are among the nine objectors, representing a cross-section of telecom, semiconductors, and health insurance. All three rank among the largest publicly traded companies in the U.S., and their shares are widely held by institutional and retail investors alike.
The full list of nine hasn't been made public. But the involvement of companies at that scale signals the objection isn't a niche complaint from a single sector. It's a coordinated pushback from some of the biggest names on American exchanges.
What OKX and ICE are building
The venue is a joint initiative between OKX, one of the largest offshore crypto exchanges, and ICE, the Atlanta-based operator of the New York Stock Exchange. The plan would allow tokenized versions of U.S. stocks to trade on a blockchain-based platform, according to the companies' earlier statements.
Tokenized stocks are designed to let investors buy and sell digital representations of shares, often with faster settlement and the ability to trade outside traditional market hours. The concept has drawn interest from crypto firms looking to bridge traditional finance and blockchain rails, but it also raises questions about investor protection, corporate governance, and whether issuers have a say in how their shares are represented.
Why the companies are objecting
The objecting companies haven't publicly detailed their reasons. But corporate resistance to tokenized equities typically centers on concerns about unauthorized derivatives of their stock, potential confusion among shareholders, and the lack of issuer consent in how their shares are packaged and traded.
For Verizon, Broadcom, and UnitedHealth, the objection is a signal that they want control over where and how their shares change hands. None of the three companies has issued a public statement on the matter.
What happens next
OKX and ICE haven't said whether they'll adjust the venue's design in response to the objections, or whether they'll proceed with listing the companies' shares anyway. The platform doesn't have a confirmed launch date, and it's unclear whether the objecting companies have legal grounds to block the listings or are simply applying public pressure.
For now, the nine companies have made their position known. Whether that's enough to change the venue's plans — or whether OKX and ICE will push ahead without issuer support — is the question that will shape the next phase of the project.
