Overview
- The two firms signed a memorandum of understanding that makes tZERO the design partner for digital transfer‑agent and broker‑dealer systems for an NYSE‑affiliated Digital Trading Platform, the deal was announced Monday.
- Under the MOU, ICE will invest in tZERO’s current funding round and received a license to tZERO’s portfolio of 103 blockchain patents that cover token transfer rules, upgradeable smart contracts and corporate‑action processing.
- tZERO is expected to seek designation as a regulated digital transfer agent and a subscriber to ICE’s platform if it meets U.S. regulatory and technical requirements, which have not yet been set or timed.
- The companies will work on industry standards for digital transfer agents, tokenization agents and broker‑dealer subscribers and will separately evaluate using tokenized assets as collateral at ICE clearing houses.
- The partnership builds on ICE’s minority stake in tZERO from 2022 and now shifts the effort from development to regulatory and standards work, a phase that will determine when and how tokenized securities move from pilot systems to real trading and settlement.