More than 60 U.S. stocks including Nvidia and Tesla are headed onchain. Here’s how it works

OKXICE, a partnership between crypto exchange OKX and Intercontinental Exchange, disclosed plans to run a round-the-clock venue for tokenized U.S. equities in a regulatory filing. The proposal lists more than 60 securities that could be offered as digital tokens, with the filing emphasizing that each token would be backed one-for-one by an underlying share held by a registered broker-dealer. Token holders would receive the economic benefits of share ownership, including dividends and voting rights, according to the document. Trades on the proposed market would not use a conventional order book. Instead, investors would buy and sell tokens by interacting with blockchain-based liquidity pools—automated market makers (AMMs)—and transact in stablecoins such as USDC, USDT and USDG. Buying would remove stock tokens from a pool while adding stablecoins, and selling would do the reverse; pool rules would determine quoted prices. OKX said trades would occur on XLayer, its blockchain, and that the pools would employ infrastructure compatible with Uniswap. The venue would operate 24/7, allowing investors to trade tokenized shares outside regular U.S. exchange hours. Because prices on the platform would be set by activity in its liquidity pools rather than directly mirroring Nasdaq or NYSE quotes, overnight and weekend markets could diverge from traditional prices. The filing also notes identity and anti-money-laundering checks will be required—anonymous trading will not be permitted. Adoption faces several potential obstacles. Companies named in the filing can object to tokenization within a 30-day window—Cerebras has already objected to its inclusion—and analysts say many issuers may be reluctant. TD Securities flagged limited near-term relevance for institutional investors, citing existing efficient access to U.S. stocks, weak corporate interest in tokenization and the temporary nature of the SEC relief (five years). Market efficacy will hinge on whether enough investors and professional trading firms participate to keep token prices aligned with conventional markets, particularly when U.S. exchanges are closed.