Kraken launches tokenized U.S. stocks in EU

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Kraken launches tokenized stocks

Key takeaways

- Kraken’s EU clients can now trade tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs through xStocks, powered by Backed Finance.

- The service offers 24/7 trading, fractional ownership, and integration with DeFi protocols.

- The tokenized stock market is valued at $421 million, with Kraken competing against Robinhood’s similar rollout in Europe.

- Unlike Robinhood, Kraken focuses only on public companies to avoid regulatory disputes.

Tokenized stocks with 24/7 access

The xStocks service, powered by Swiss firm Backed Finance, enables EU clients to purchase blockchain-based versions of stocks like Tesla, Nvidia, Apple, Google, Strategy, and Circle. Each token is backed 1:1 by the underlying shares held with custodians, designed to mirror the price of traditional equities. Unlike conventional shares, these tokenized assets can be traded at any time, fractionally owned, and integrated with decentralized finance (DeFi) applications.

Kraken Co-CEO Arjun Sethi described the approach as a way to shift benefits directly to investors. “If you own a share, you should own it,” Sethi said. “If someone is going to make money off of it, from staking or otherwise, then it should be passed on to the person who owns it, versus the institution.”

Competition heats up in tokenized markets

The tokenized stock market remains relatively small, valued at around $421 million globally, but momentum is building. Earlier this year, Robinhood launched a competing service for European clients, giving users access to both public and private company shares. Kraken has chosen to focus solely on public companies to avoid regulatory controversies, such as those surrounding OpenAI tokenized stock sales.

With over 60 tokenized assets already offered globally in more than 140 countries, the expansion into Europe is part of Kraken’s phased rollout that began in May. The firm sees tokenization as an opportunity to bridge traditional finance with crypto-native systems, giving investors exposure to mainstream assets without going through Wall Street brokers.

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Outlook

While adoption of tokenized securities remains in its early stages, Kraken’s entry into the European market underscores growing demand for hybrid financial products. Analysts note that wider regulatory clarity and increased institutional participation could accelerate the sector’s growth. For now, Kraken’s launch offers European investors a new, more flexible way to access U.S. equities—anytime and anywhere.

We also informed Kraken meets SEC to discuss tokenized trading and regulatory framework.

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