Anthropic has publicly called out a list of investment platforms it says are selling unauthorized access to its shares, drawing a hard line as demand for AI equity reaches fever pitch. According to TechCrunch AI, the company updated its website this week naming Open Doors Partners, Unicorns Exchange, Pachamama Capital, Lionheart Ventures, Hiive, Forge Global, Sydecar, and Upmarket as firms not authorized to facilitate buying or selling Anthropic stock. “Any sale or transfer of Anthropic stock, or any interest in Anthropic stock, offered by these firms is void and will not be recognized on our books and records,” the company’s support page reads, as detailed in TechCrunch AI.
The timing isn’t coincidental. Anthropic is rumored to be raising fresh capital at a $900 billion valuation, and secondary market brokers recently told TechCrunch it’s one of the “hardest” stocks to source. When supply is that tight and demand is that loud, gray-market middlemen rush in. Anthropic is trying to slam that door shut.
What the company is saying
Anthropic’s position is unambiguous: both preferred and common stock carry transfer restrictions, and any sale not approved by the board is invalid. The blog specifically targets special purpose vehicles and retail investment firms.
- SPVs are prohibited from acquiring Anthropic stock
- Forward contracts claiming exposure to its shares are unauthorized
- Offers to invest in past or future financing rounds via SPV are off-limits
The brokers push back
Two of the named platforms told TechCrunch AI they shouldn’t be on the list. Forge Global said its inclusion was an error and that it’s working with Anthropic to remove its name, noting it doesn’t facilitate transactions without explicit company approval. Sydecar said it only plays an administrative role and requires sponsors to confirm they have the necessary consents. Hiive spokesperson Dakota Betts said the platform shares Anthropic’s concerns and that all transfers it facilitates are approved by the issuer.
So the lines here are messier than the headline suggests. Some platforms appear to operate above board with issuer consent. Others, per Anthropic, do not.
Why this matters
The secondary market for AI shares has exploded. Crypto exchanges like OKX have rolled out pre-IPO perpetual futures, derivative instruments that track private company values without granting actual ownership. SPVs add another layer, sometimes holding legitimate stakes from official investors, sometimes inheriting equity from forced liquidations like the FTX bankruptcy, and sometimes peddling claims that are outright fraudulent.
What stands out here is the precedent. Anthropic isn’t just protecting its cap table. It’s signaling to the entire AI investment ecosystem that private company shares aren’t a free-for-all just because retail money wants in. Expect OpenAI, xAI, and other top-tier private AI labs to watch this closely. If Anthropic’s hardline approach holds, it could reshape how secondary access to AI equity works across the board.
What to watch
- Whether Forge Global and Sydecar get removed from the list after their pushback
- How aggressively Anthropic enforces the void-transfer policy on existing SPV holders
- Whether other major AI labs publish similar warnings in the coming weeks
- Regulatory attention on “tokenized” AI equity products sold to retail investors
For anyone holding or eyeing exposure to Anthropic through a secondary vehicle, the message is clear: verify board approval or assume the position is worthless on the books. Full details and the complete list of named platforms are in the original TechCrunch AI report.