Kraken Parent Eyes Global xStocks Offering

Kraken Parent Company Partners to Expand Tokenized Stocks Globally

Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has partnered with global fintech firm GTN to expand its xStocks offering beyond the United States market for the first time.

Currently, xStocks are exclusively U.S. equities, but they are only accessible to investors outside the United States. This new initiative aims to broaden the offering to include equities from various global markets.

Kraken’s xStocks are blockchain-based tokens, with each token backed one-to-one by a real company share held in regulated custody. This expansion into international equities represents a significant step forward for tokenized stocks, a rapidly growing sector within the crypto market.

“Financial institutions are looking to enter new asset classes and markets without the burden of rebuilding their existing technology,” stated Ankit Shah, GTN’s Global Head of FinTech. “Our infrastructure enables partners like Payward to launch swiftly across more than 90 markets and a comprehensive range of instruments, and it includes the crucial sub-accounting technology that Kraken requires to offer tokenized products.”

The collaboration will commence with equities listed in Hong Kong, with subsequent expansion planned for the U.K., European, and South Korean markets. Pending regulatory approvals in each jurisdiction, the partnership also opens avenues for tokenizing asset classes beyond equities.

According to a company release, xStocks were first introduced in June 2025, initially featuring a limited catalog of U.S. stocks and ETFs. The offering has since grown to encompass over 500 tokenized assets, facilitating more than $35 billion in transaction volume. It is important to note that xStocks are not available to U.S. residents.

Under the terms of the agreement, GTN will provide the global regulated infrastructure for trade execution and custody. Payward, in turn, will leverage its xStocks framework to tokenize international equities and integrate them onto blockchain networks.

Mark Greenberg, global head of Payward Services, highlighted the problem this partnership aims to solve: tokenized assets offer users the ability to trade a wide array of assets without the complexities of localization.

“For decades, we’ve accepted that capital markets should be fragmented by country, currency, and market hours. This is a problem stemming from legacy financial infrastructure,” Greenberg commented.

The partnership is already operational at the infrastructure level. Distribution to GTN’s institutional clients will follow once the necessary licenses are secured in each respective market.

Several major players are pursuing similar strategies. Robinhood launched its tokenized equities product on its proprietary blockchain on July 1, and Coinbase is preparing a similar 1:1-backed offering through its Base network.

In March, Payward and Nasdaq announced a tokenized equities gateway, with a target launch in early 2027. Earlier, xStocks expanded its reach to Telegram’s TON Wallet, exploring the potential for mass-market distribution to unlock scalability.

What distinguishes the GTN deal is its ambitious global scope. While Robinhood and Coinbase are focusing on U.S. stocks, Payward is targeting a much broader market, beginning with Hong Kong and eventually encompassing GTN’s network of over 90 markets.