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United States regulators are scrutinizing tokenized “PreStocks” tied to private equity in Anthropic and OpenAI after the instruments sharply fell in value following a series of unauthorized equity transfer warnings. The tokens, which trade on the Solana blockchain, are designed to give retail investors exposure to privately held, high‑valuation AI firms before any public listing, but their prices collapsed when reports emerged that the underlying shares may not be properly secured or verified for transfer. The warnings have raised concerns that investors may lack a valid legal claim to the actual company equity, prompting a wave of panic selling and renewed focus on how such tokenized products are structured and marketed to the public. Washington, United States officials and industry experts are investigating the legitimacy of the platforms issuing these AI‑linked tokens as the technology sector undergoes a broader “AI‑led reset,” including workforce reductions at major firms such as Meta, Amazon, and Cognizant. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins said the tokenization of securities is already active and emphasized that investor protection remains central to the agency’s mission, noting that the SEC has halted trading for 14 companies connected to similar overseas manipulation schemes and cross‑border fraud. The scandal is adding complexity to the Senate Banking Committee’s upcoming vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which seeks to clarify the legal framework for U.S. crypto markets and determine whether products like these PreStocks fall under the jurisdiction of the SEC or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, as blockchain analysts continue to track the affected tokens and the source of the transfer warnings.

Prepared by Christopher Adams and reviewed by editorial team.