Author: Ben Weiss
Translation: Deep Tide TechFlow
Original link:https://fortune.com/2026/03/05/okx-ice-intercontinental-exchange-investment-tokenized-securities-25-billio/

Deep Tide Guide: The highest hall of traditional financial infrastructure officially enters crypto. The parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, ICE, invests in OKX at a valuation of $25 billion and will open tokenized stock trading from the NYSE to its users—this is not just an ordinary financial investment, but the most iconic step in the era of the integration of TradFi and CeFi.

Last summer, Haider Rafique, the Global Head of Corporate Affairs at OKX, flew to Atlanta specifically to meet with Jeffrey Sprecher, the Chairman of the New York Stock Exchange. The originally scheduled 30-minute meeting lasted for a full four hours.

Fast forward a few months later, this informal chat evolved into a series of meetings and intense due diligence, ultimately leading to a significant deal. The Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)—the publicly traded parent company of the New York Stock Exchange—has completed a strategic investment in OKX, with a valuation fixed at $25 billion, and will take a seat on the OKX board. The two parties officially announced this on Thursday.

Rafique declined to disclose the specific amount and terms of ICE's investment but emphasized that the two parties are highly aligned in vision.

"Our view of the world, our outlook on the future of tokenized securities, how derivatives will reach the global stage, and how traditional finance and digital assets will integrate—all these have a strong chemical reaction," Rafique described his initial meeting with NYSE Chairman Jeffrey Sprecher.

This transaction is not merely a financial investment. OKX will provide ICE with real-time price data streams for tradable cryptocurrencies on its platform; more importantly, OKX users will be able to directly trade tokenized stocks and derivatives listed on the New York Stock Exchange—this feature is expected to officially launch in the second half of 2026. The term "tokenized" refers to the process of packaging financial assets into blockchain wrappers, which supporters believe can reduce transaction fees and other costs. "This is undoubtedly not just a casual investment," Rafique emphasized.

A New Competitive Landscape

ICE's investment in OKX is an important step for this trading giant to keep pace with the rapid changes in trading models, but it is not the first step.

In November of last year, ICE announced a $2 billion investment in the prediction market platform Polymarket, which is valued at $9 billion. In January of this year, ICE also announced that it is developing its own blockchain-based tokenized securities trading infrastructure.

Traditional financial institutions betting on crypto companies are not isolated cases. In November last year, market maker Citadel Securities invested $200 million in the crypto exchange Kraken at a $20 billion valuation.

"The future competitors for institutions like ICE may not necessarily be traditional institutions such as CME or Nasdaq, but more likely DeFi protocols or super apps," admitted Michael Blaugrund, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at ICE, hinting at Robinhood and the recently announced partnership with BlackRock by the DeFi platform Uniswap.

In an interview, Blaugrund declined to provide more details on the specific construction of the blockchain trading platform. He stated that ICE's self-built tokenization platform and the plan to open tokenized stock trading to OKX users are "complementary projects, but not the same project."

OKX's U.S. Strategy

For OKX, the partnership with ICE is an important part of its image transformation—from a mostly East Asia-based offshore exchange to a globally compliant trading hub operating in the U.S. This goal is particularly urgent as its competitor Binance continues to face regulatory turmoil.

"We are part of the clear-minded group in this industry," Rafique characterized OKX.

In February 2025, OKX paid a $500 million fine to the U.S. Department of Justice for operating unlicensed remittance services and pleaded guilty to related charges. In April 2025, OKX completed its relaunch in the U.S. Rafique stated that OKX plans to relocate up to 2,000 of its 5,000 employees to the U.S., but did not disclose a specific timetable. "Especially to support this product, we will definitely invest heavily in the U.S.," he said, referring specifically to the trading plans for tokenized stocks and other assets from ICE.

Rafique also expressed greater expectations for the prospects of the partnership. "We are a three-letter company; they are also a three-letter company," he said, "My wish is that perhaps we can build a more grand relationship between us."