Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev has argued that public companies should not automatically have the power to block third-party tokenized products referencing their shares, escalating a dispute with AMC Entertainment CEO Adam Aron. Tenev’s position is that issuer consent should depend on the legal rights created by a product, not simply on whether blockchain technology is involved.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Tenev defended Robinhood after Aron objected to AMC-linked tokens being offered without the company’s approval. Robinhood maintains that these instruments are separate financial products that provide economic exposure without making their holders AMC shareholders or altering AMC’s official ownership register.
Should companies be able to approve or veto the tokenization of their stocks? https://t.co/87RpKjnRRo
— Vlad Tenev (@vladtenev) September 11, 2026
Tenev Draws a Line Around Shareholder Rights
Tenev said issuers should be involved when a tokenized product changes rights attached to shares, replaces the official shareholder ledger or creates new obligations for a company or its transfer agent. Where a third party merely creates a separate instrument referencing freely transferable shares, however, he argues that the underlying issuer should not receive an additional veto.
The disagreement emerged after Aron criticized Robinhood’s AMC-linked offering and raised concerns about investor confusion, corporate governance and AMC’s ability to control how products bearing its name reach the market. AMC’s objection centers partly on the possibility that investors could mistake tokenized exposure for direct ownership of AMC shares, despite the products carrying different legal rights.
Robinhood’s own documentation supports that distinction. Its current Stock Tokens are tokenized debt securities issued by Robinhood Assets (Jersey) Limited and provide economic exposure to underlying securities without giving holders legal or beneficial rights against the referenced company. Token holders therefore do not enter the issuer’s cap table or acquire conventional voting rights merely by owning the token.
Robinhood Expands Its Tokenized Equity Model
Robinhood launched its public Robinhood Chain mainnet in July 2026 using Arbitrum technology and simultaneously expanded its newer generation of Stock Tokens. The company says those assets are available through Robinhood Wallet in more than 120 countries, subject to jurisdictional restrictions. The new tokens can trade onchain and interact with DeFi applications, while the earlier Classic Stock Tokens remain available separately through Robinhood Europe.
That distinction also matters for regulation. Classic Stock Tokens offered in Europe are derivative contracts between customers and Robinhood Europe, while the newer onchain products are structured as debt securities. “Tokenized stock” can therefore describe materially different legal structures even when each product tracks the price of the same public company.
Tenev has argued that existing markets already permit third parties to create options, structured products and other instruments referencing public shares without issuer approval. The unresolved question is how far that principle should extend to blockchain-based securities that can circulate and interact with decentralized markets, particularly when issuers raise concerns about disclosure, investor understanding and market integrity.
