Robinhood CEO: Tokenized Stocks Do Not Need Company Approval if Underlying Share Rights Remain...

Robinhood CEO: Tokenized Stocks Do Not Need Company Approval if Underlying Share Rights Remain UnchangedRobinhood Co-founder and CEO Vlad Tenev said that public companies should control the rights attached to their shares, but not every lawful use investors make of those shares after acquiring them. Issuer consent should be required if a tokenized product alters the rights of the underlying shares, replaces the company’s official shareholder register, or imposes new obligations on the company or its transfer agent. However, authorization should not be necessary when the product is an independent financial instrument backed by or referencing freely transferable shares without changing the issuer's rights or obligations.Robinhood Stock Tokens fall into the latter category. They are backed 1:1 by the underlying shares and provide economic exposure without altering a company’s ownership structure or the rights attached to its shares. Tenev argued that putting assets onchain should not grant issuers veto powers they do not have in traditional markets, and companies should not be able to block new investors simply because they do not understand the technology.

Source: Wu Blockchain