OpenAI and Anthropic Crack Down on Secondary Market Equity Transfers

Huo Xing Cai Jing reports that on May 13, OpenAI and Anthropic nearly simultaneously released or updated their official policies on their websites, explicitly declaring that all股权转让 without written consent are invalid. This includes direct sales and purchases, SPV (special purpose vehicle) shares, tokenized equity interests, and forward contracts. Both companies stated that such purported “equity transfers” will not be recognized in their books or records, and buyers will not acquire any shareholder rights; unauthorized transfers “will not be recognized by the company and have no economic value.” This major move quickly impacted secondary markets. Tokenized products on platforms such as PreStocks (Jupiter’s pre-IPO marketplace) were hit first. Anthropic token prices plunged approximately 40% within 24 hours, with implied valuations sharply declining; corresponding OpenAI products also fell over 30%. Panic spread in traditional secondary markets, and although crypto pre-IPO perpetual contracts are purely derivative instruments (not representing actual equity), market sentiment still caused significant trading volatility. OpenAI and Anthropic are not strictly prohibiting “equity transfers.” According to The Wall Street Journal, during a recent funding round, OpenAI permitted each employee to sell up to $30 million in shares. In October last year, more than 600 current and former employees collectively sold their shares, raising a total of $6.6 billion. Additionally, Bloomberg reported in February this year that Anthropic is planning an employee tender offer with a valuation of at least $350 billion, consistent with its recent funding round valuation, allowing eligible current and former employees to sell a portion of their vested shares. Therefore, the core objective of this move appears to be maintaining tight control over equity structure to prevent unregulated “shadow shareholders,” while clearing obstacles for a potential 2026 IPO (as secondary markets had previously inflated valuations far beyond official levels, undermining IPO pricing and fundraising narratives), standardizing equity transfer protocols, and reducing disruptions to shareholder registers and valuation narratives caused by unauthorized secondary trading. This policy also helps mitigate U.S. securities law risks, combats fraudulent SPV scams, and protects the interests of early employees and investors. This move marks the beginning of a new era of strict regulation for private AI equity, and the premium space for crypto pre-IPO products is expected to be further compressed.