Amid intense investor interest in artificial intelligence firms, Anthropic recently issued a public alert on its website, clarifying that numerous private and secondary investment platforms claiming to provide access to its shares are operating without authorization.
The company specifically identified Open Doors Partners, Unicorns Exchange, Pachamama Capital, Lionheart Ventures, Hiive (regarding new offerings), Forge Global (regarding new offerings), Sydecar, and Upmarket as entities not sanctioned to facilitate the purchase or sale of its stock.
Anthropic's support page unequivocally states, "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."
When contacted for a statement, Forge Global asserted that its inclusion on the list was an error. The platform informed TechCrunch, "We are working with Anthropic to remove Forge’s name from this alert," adding, "Forge does not facilitate transactions in any private company’s shares without the explicit approval of the company."
Sydecar, in its defense, clarified that its role is purely administrative. In an emailed statement, the company explained, "The company does not buy or sell securities or solicit transactions in any private companies. Further, Sydecar requires sponsors to attest that they have reviewed relevant documents relating to the transferability of shares and that they have the required approvals and consents from the company."
Anthropic's cautionary announcement arrives amidst a growing trend of investment platforms providing exposure to AI companies' shares and their potential growth. These offerings often materialize through secondary markets where existing shareholders divest, "tokenized" securities, special purpose vehicles (SPVs), or other forms of secondary market holdings.
Anthropic, which is reportedly seeking new funding at an astounding $900 billion valuation, has experienced particularly high demand. Several secondary market brokers indicated to TechCrunch last month that its stock is among the most challenging to acquire.
"Anthropic is right to take seriously concerns around unauthorized share sales and investment scams," stated Dakota Betts, a spokesperson for Hiive, in an emailed comment. "We share those concerns. They are a major reason why Hiive invested heavily in legal, compliance, and diligence infrastructure from the beginning, and all share transfers facilitated by Hiive are approved by the issuer."
In the past year, certain cryptocurrency firms, such as the exchange OKX, have launched investment products offering exposure to AI companies. These frequently manifest as pre-IPO perpetual futures contracts, which are derivative instruments designed to track the value of private companies on secondary markets without conveying actual share ownership.
Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) diverge from these derivative systems by enabling investors to purchase shares in an entity that possesses at least a partial stake in Anthropic. Such equity could originate from an official investor or be acquired through forced liquidations, as observed during the FTX bankruptcy. Conversely, some equity claims may prove entirely fraudulent.
Anthropic asserts that both its preferred and common stock are subject to stringent transfer restrictions, rendering any share sale or transfer unapproved by its board of directors invalid. The company explicitly states that any third-party platform, particularly SPVs and retail investment firms, claiming to sell its shares directly or through forward contracts, lacks authorization to do so.
From the company's blog, it is clearly stated: "We do not permit special purpose vehicles (SPVs) to acquire Anthropic stock and any transfer of shares to an SPV are void under our transfer restrictions. Offers to invest in Anthropic’s past or future financing rounds through an SPV are prohibited."
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