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                                                                    EXHIBIT 3.3

                            CERTIFICATE OF AMENDMENT
                                     OF THE
                          CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION
                                       OF
                            MRV COMMUNICATIONS, INC.

        MRV Communications, Inc., a corporation organized and existing under
the laws of the State of Delaware (the "Corporation"), pursuant to the
provisions of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the
"DGCL"), DOES HEREBY CERTIFY as follows:

        FIRST:  The Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation is hereby
amended by deleting the first paragraph of Section 4 of the Certificate of
Incorporation in its present form and substituting therefor new first and second
paragraphs of Section 4 in the following form:

        A.      This corporation is authorized to issue two classes of stock, to
be designated, respectively, "Common Stock" and "Preferred Stock." The total
number of shares of this corporation is authorized to issue is forty-one
Million (41,000,000) shares of capital stock.

        B.      Of such authorized shares, Forty Million (40,000,000) shares
shall be designated "Common Stock" and have a par value of $.0034 per share.
One Million (1,000,000) shares shall be designated "Preferred Stock" and have a
par value of $0.01 per share. Upon the filing of this Certificate of Amendment
of the Certificate of Incorporation, each outstanding share of Common Stock of
the corporation outstanding immediately prior to such filing shall be
reconstituted as and converted into two shares of Common Stock.

        SECOND: The amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation of the
Corporation set forth in this Certificate of Amendment has been duly adopted in
accordance with the provisions of Section 242 of the DGCL by (a) the Board of
Directors of the Corporation having duly adopted a resolution setting forth such
amendment and declaring its advisability and submitting it to the stockholders
of the Corporation for their approval, and (b) the stockholders of the
Corporation having duly adopted such amendment by vote of the holders of a
majority of the outstanding stock entitled to vote thereon at a special meeting
of stockholders called and held upon notice in accordance with Section 222 of
the DGCL.

        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Corporation has caused its corporate seal to be
hereunto affixed and this Certificate of Amendment to be signed by Noam Lotan,
its President and Chief Executive Officer, and attested by Shlomo Margalit, its
Secretary, this 23rd day of July, 1996.

                                MRV COMMUNICATIONS, INC.


                                By: /s/  NOAM LOTAN
                                    -------------------------------------
                                    Noam Lotan
                                    President and Chief Executive Officer

ATTEST:


/s/  SHLOMO MARGALIT
-----------------------------
Shlomo Margalit
Secretary

                                                        STATE OF DELAWARE
                                                       SECRETARY OF STATE
                                                    DIVISION OF CORPORATIONS
                                                     FILED 09:00 AM 07/29/96
                                                       960219667 - 2290403