ARK Venture Fund, the closed-end investment vehicle managed by ARK Investment Management, has secured approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to launch a tokenized class of fund shares, clearing a key regulatory obstacle standing in the way of secondary trading through alternative trading systems and other approved venues.
The SEC’s September 21 order amended an earlier exemptive order covering both the fund and its manager, granting relief that permits ARK to simultaneously offer a share class listed on a national securities exchange alongside a separate tokenized class capable of trading on one or more alternative trading systems, or being quoted through other permitted mechanisms. The order took effect immediately, though it remains bound by the specific conditions laid out in ARK’s original application.
Source: sec.gov
Tokenized Shares Can Use Distributed Ledger Technology
Under the terms of ARK’s application, ownership records for the tokenized share class will be maintained using distributed ledger technology, commonly known as blockchain. Distribution of these shares can happen either through registered broker-dealers or directly via the fund’s own transfer agent.
Once issued, the tokenized shares may trade on alternative trading systems, be quoted through other approved quotation mediums, or move through peer-to-peer transfers between wallets that have received prior approval.
Any alternative trading systems used for this purpose must operate under Regulation ATS and be run by broker-dealers registered with both the SEC and FINRA. It’s worth noting the SEC’s order doesn’t indicate that actual trading of these tokenized shares has begun yet, this approval simply clears the regulatory pathway.
SEC Sets Conditions For Tokenized Class
The approved relief comes attached to specific ongoing obligations. ARK Venture Fund must prominently disclose its net asset value per share on its website every business day.
The fund is also required to clearly disclose that transactions occurring on an exchange, alternative trading system, or through peer-to-peer markets can happen at prices either above or below that net asset value, meaning investors could end up paying more than NAV or receiving less than NAV depending on secondary-market conditions at the time of a given trade.
Under this approved structure, tokenized shares won’t carry early withdrawal charges. The fund must also continue complying with existing regulatory requirements governing multiple share classes, distribution and service fees, and how expenses get allocated across different share classes.
Wallets Will Face KYC & AML Checks
Security and compliance safeguards extend to the digital wallets themselves. The order requires ARK Venture Fund, or an agent working on its behalf, to conduct anti-money-laundering and know-your-customer reviews on any wallet seeking to hold tokenized shares.
Only wallets that clear this approval process will be permitted to actually hold shares in the Tokenized Class. The fund must collect sufficient identifying information about wallet owners and remain compliant with applicable investor-identification, sanctions, and anti-money-laundering rules throughout.
ARK Sought The Relief In May
This approval traces back several months. ARK Venture Fund and ARK Investment Management originally filed their application on May 20, 2026, followed by amendments submitted in both June and August. The SEC published formal notice of the application on August 24, giving interested parties an opportunity to request a hearing on the matter. No such hearing request materialized, and the Commission subsequently moved forward with granting the requested exemptions.
ARK Venture Fund itself operates as a registered, continuously offered, non-diversified closed-end management investment company structured as an interval fund. Its stated investment objective centers on long-term capital growth, with a portfolio primarily built around companies tied to disruptive innovation.
SEC Relief Extends Beyond Existing Fund Structure
This newly amended order effectively replaces a prior 2025 order, which had already permitted ARK Venture Fund to issue multiple share classes along with certain distribution, service, and early withdrawal fees, but had made no provision for exchange listing or any secondary trading market for those shares.
Notably, the updated order’s relief isn’t limited strictly to ARK Venture Fund itself, it can also extend to certain future funds advised by ARK Investment Management or its qualifying affiliates, provided those funds comply with the same set of conditions established here.
This action arrives as the SEC continues building out a broader regulatory framework specifically for tokenized securities trading more generally. Just days earlier, on September 17, the Commission issued separate temporary, conditional exemptive relief covering certain tokenized National Market System stocks traded through designated Tokenized Securities Venues, a distinct order focused on tokenized stocks and trading infrastructure rather than ARK Venture Fund shares specifically.
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