Kraken parent Payward to tokenize Asian and European equities
Payward is expanding its xStocks platform beyond the U.S. to tokenize equities in Hong Kong, the UK and South Korea, accelerating a race among crypto and traditional finance firms to bring global stock markets onchain.
Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, is pushing its xStocks platform into international markets. The firm is working with investment infrastructure provider GTN to bring Hong Kong-listed stocks onchain. U.K., European and South Korean equities are expected to follow, subject to regulatory approvals.
The expansion marks a shift in the tokenized securities sector, which has largely focused on replicating U.S. tech stocks like Nvidia, Apple and Tesla. By accessing Asian markets, Payward aims to capture demand for shares in AI supply chain companies that are popular among global retail traders.
Payward is entering a crowded field as crypto exchanges and Wall Street institutions race to bring stock trading onchain. Robinhood recently expanded its tokenized stock offerings beyond Europe, and Coinbase is planning a similar rollout. Traditional market infrastructure providers are also making aggressive moves, with the DTCC testing tokenized systems, while Nasdaq and the NYSE have launched their own initiatives.
The push reflects a growing conviction that blockchain technology can upgrade capital markets through faster settlement and continuous trading. Citi projects the tokenized securities market could reach $5.5 trillion by 2030, with tokenized equities accounting for $2.6 trillion of that total.
Launched last year with U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds, xStocks now supports more than 500 tokenized securities. Payward reports the platform has processed over $35 billion in trading volume and attracted nearly 200,000 holders. These products remain unavailable to U.S. investors.
Under the new partnership, GTN will handle execution, custody and recordkeeping for the underlying traditional shares. GTN, which connects to over 90 global markets, also plans to offer xStocks products to its institutional clients. The partnership additionally lays the groundwork for Payward to expand beyond equities into other tokenized asset classes.
The announcement fuels an ongoing industry debate over issuance models. Platforms like xStocks rely on third parties to purchase and custody traditional shares before minting tokens. Competing factions argue that securities should be issued natively on blockchains to eliminate intermediaries altogether, a structural question drawing increasing scrutiny from regulators.
