Nasdaq is teaming up with Kraken to design how tokenized stocks will work on regulated markets and public blockchains. The partnership aims to let real shares move between Nasdaq’s traditional systems and on-chain venues. It seeks to keep issuer rights and investor protections intact throughout these cross‑system movements.
What Nasdaq and Kraken Are Building
Nasdaq has unveiled an “issuer‑centered equity token design” for listed companies. The design lets listed companies have their shares represented as tokens without losing legal control. The exchange filed a proposal with the SEC in September 2025 to support these changes.
The proposal would allow equity securities, including issuer‑sponsored tokens, to trade on its markets under existing regulatory safeguards. It would also let these securities settle in token form through DTCC’s infrastructure, integrating blockchain rails with traditional clearing systems. That filing laid the groundwork for today’s tokenization push.
Nasdaq is partnering with Payward, Kraken’s parent and xStocks infrastructure provider, to build an “equities transformation gateway” for tokenized equities. The equities transformation gateway will let issuers and investors move shares between permissioned environments like Nasdaq and DTCC, and permissionless blockchains. The design aims to maintain price integrity, corporate governance, and regulatory compliance across both worlds.
How Tokenized Stocks Will Work in Practice
Under Nasdaq’s design, each equity token must remain legally equivalent to its underlying share in the issuer’s official registry. That means token holders retain the same voting rights, dividend claims, and corporate‑action treatment as they would with traditional holdings. The tokens do not create a new class of synthetic exposure; they mirror the existing share.
Kraken brings on-chain distribution and liquidity experience through xStocks, its fully collateralized tokenized equities platform for global capital markets. xStocks tokens remain backed 1:1 by underlying stocks and ETFs. A licensed custodian holds the assets in a bankruptcy‑remote structure.
The tokens already trade 24/7 for non‑U.S. clients across supported venues and compatible on-chain environments worldwide. By linking that infrastructure to Nasdaq’s gateway, the two firms aim to enable the same equity to exist as both a conventional listing and an on-chain token.
Nasdaq says it expects the initial tokenization program and related DLT services to go live in the first half of 2027. The rollout will start with select issuers that opt into the model and may expand as regulators and market participants grow comfortable.
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