Tenev Defends Robinhood’s Tokenized Stocks After AMC Row

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev defended the firm’s tokenized stock products in his first television comments since AMC CEO Adam Aron accused Robinhood of issuing unregistered tokens tied to AMC shares and threatened regulatory action.

The dispute began after Robinhood expanded tokenized stock offerings through a unit called Robinhood Assets Limited to include AMC and more than 190 other public companies without those firms agreeing to participate. Aron posted criticisms on social media, saying the products allow Robinhood to create exposure to AMC stock without the company’s involvement. He wrote: “I find this practice to be contemptible, outrageous, disgusting, detestable, inexcusable, vile.” Aron also said he would consider filing a complaint with the Securities and Exchange Commission and hiring outside counsel.

When the dispute became public, AMC shares rose as much as 15% in premarket trading as investors bought both the company’s stock and related tokens.

Tenev argued a public company cannot control every financial product developed once its stock trades publicly. He described Robinhood’s tokens as debt instruments backed one-to-one by the underlying shares, held as collateral. Under that structure, token holders receive economic exposure to price moves but do not receive voting rights or other shareholder privileges.

Robinhood’s chief legal officer, former SEC commissioner Dan Gallagher, defended the company’s reading of U.S. securities law and its view that the tokens are distinct from direct ownership of equities and reflect only economic interest.

The dispute raises a regulatory question about whether a broker can package a public company’s shares into a tradable token without the issuer’s consent. Legal experts and market participants say an SEC complaint from AMC could become a test case for how existing securities rules apply to tokenized representations of stock.

Tokenized stock offerings have grown as brokerages and fintech firms offer ways for retail investors to trade fractional or digital representations of equities. Robinhood markets the tokens as one-to-one collateralized instruments tradable on its platform, while critics argue issuing such products without issuer approval may violate registration and disclosure requirements that govern securities.