SEC Approves Onchain Stock Trading, Bans Synthetic Tokens

The head of AMC branded Robinhood's stock tokens as contemptible. On Thursday, the US Securities and Exchange Commission gave the green light to onchain stock trading while keeping synthetic tokens out.

The order does not single out any specific companies. It does set out conditions, and two of them align with the criticisms AMC had voiced publicly.

AMC's Chief Executive Speaks Out

Through Robinhood Assets Limited, the trading app made tokenized stocks available for AMC and over 190 other firms. Those companies never gave their consent.

"I find this practice to be contemptible, outrageous, disgusting, detestable, inexcusable, vile. How can it possibly be legal? We have no connection to this at all…" Adam Aron stated.

Chief executive Vlad Tenev responded that once shares are publicly traded, a company cannot control every product built on them.

He described the tokens as debt securities backed one to one by shares held as collateral. Buyers get the price but no voting rights.

What the SEC's Thursday Document Contained

Trading venues must confirm that a token grants holders the same rights and privileges as the underlying share. Before listing a token created by an outside firm, they must notify the company and allow it to object.

Atkins titled that part of his statement "No Synthetics."

"Today, the SEC is taking a significant step forward… to bring America's capital markets into the digital age," the chairman said.

Access is the limitation. Only approved participants can trade, even though the smart contracts must run on public blockchains that anyone can inspect.

Symbol counts and volumes are capped. Onchain trading halts when the listed share halts. The relief expires in five years.

Venues must also publish trade data at set intervals, including price, size, time, and daily volume. In exchange, they avoid being classified as a stock exchange.

Robinhood has since started promising voting rights and redemption for its tokens.

"Robinhood supports the SEC innovation exemption. Americans deserve access to crypto technology and all of the financial innovations it makes possible, including instant settlement, 24/7 trading, and fractionalization by default," the company said following the regulator's release.

Johann Kerbrat, senior vice president and general manager of crypto and international at Robinhood, called the exemption a major step that would allow liquid tokenized securities markets to develop onshore.

The SEC innovation exemption is a signal that tokenization is ready to come to the United States. This is a major step by the agency and will allow liquid tokenized securities markets to develop onshore.

Smart regulation accelerates innovation. Looking forward to what we build… https://t.co/1vnhbo5CeR

— Johann Kerbrat (@JohannKerbrat) September 17, 2026

Two of the three items on that list were being debated, with the SEC holding a separate roundtable on round-the-clock stock trading the same day. Robinhood was on the panel.

Atkins called the measure temporary and said permanent rules must follow. The SEC is taking public comment first.