OKX and NYSE owner file to trade stocks as crypto tokens

OKX, a crypto exchange, teamed up with ICE, the company that owns the New York Stock Exchange. On Sunday, their joint venture filed paperwork with the SEC. The plan: let people trade digital tokens that represent 63 real U.S. stocks. They could do it any hour, any day of the week. It's built on a brand-new SEC rule from September called the Innovation Exemption.

Normally, U.S. stocks only trade during set hours on weekdays. Tokenizing a stock means copying its price onto a blockchain token. People can then trade that token nonstop instead of waiting for the market to open. ICE brings Wall Street credibility. OKX brings the crypto trading technology. But this isn't live yet. Every company whose stock gets tokenized has 30 days to object. Regulators still have to sign off before trading starts.

Keep reading — what to watch

Will any big-name companies opt out once they realize their stock is being tokenized without their direct involvement? That 30-day objection window is the first real test. If most of the 63 companies stay quiet, it's a strong signal. Round-the-clock stock trading could be coming for the whole market, not just this one platform.