ICE and OKX Form 50-50 Joint Venture for US Tokenized Equity and Futures Markets
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, and crypto platform OKX have announced a 50-50 joint venture to connect OKX’s 120 million global users to U.S.-regulated futures markets and tokenized equities. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals.
The joint venture will operate as a U.S.-registered broker-dealer and futures commission merchant (FCM). Once operational, it will allow OKX customers in the United States and abroad to access ICE futures markets and NYSE tokenized equity products. The companies also plan to pursue opportunities in regulatory-compliant, blockchain-enabled markets.
Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo will serve as co-chair of the joint venture. Cuomo, who began working with OKX in 2023, said the partnership brings together OKX’s blockchain technology and ICE’s market infrastructure to build a more modern, transparent, and resilient financial system.
ICE’s Senior Vice President of Futures Exchanges, Trabue Bland, emphasized that ICE’s global benchmarks and regulated market technology have earned the trust of institutions and traders. The partnership aims to extend that reach to OKX’s 120 million retail traders.
OKX serves more than 120 million users worldwide and holds regulatory licenses in the U.S., UAE, Singapore, Australia, and the European Economic Area. The company publishes monthly proof-of-reserves reports and has positioned itself as a compliance-focused exchange. Headquartered in San Jose, California and Dubai, OKX has a global operational presence that the joint venture will leverage across multiple jurisdictions.
The deal follows ICE’s strategic investment in OKX announced in March, deepening a relationship that now extends into shared market infrastructure. This partnership puts a major traditional finance institution in direct partnership with a top-tier crypto exchange, building a new entity designed to serve both retail crypto traders and institutional participants with regulated, tokenized financial instruments.