Nasdaq to distribute tokenized stocks globally via crypto exchange Kraken

Nasdaq is working with crypto exchange Kraken and corporate issuers to develop a framework for listing and distributing tokenized stocks via Kraken to investors outside of the US.

Source: WSJ

➡️ Why this matters

Nasdaq and NYSE are the two key pillars for public US stock market that account for over $60T in market cap. Both are actively working with the SEC and DTCC to bring the issuer sponsored equity tokenization model en masse to the market.

But crypto exchanges have already moved into tokenized stocks first:

• Kraken's third-party tokenized xStocks cracked $28B in total mint/redemption and trading volume since the launch in Sept 2024

• Robinhood launched its own third-party Stock Token with much fanfare last year

• Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, entered the space last week through partnership with Ondo Finance’s tokenized stock products

  
  

These platforms also have something traditional exchanges lack: large international retail user bases, making them powerful distribution channels for tokenized securities.

By arriving a decade late to crypto, traditional exchanges effectively ceded spot crypto trading, a business now generating $100B+ in annual revenue for crypto-native venues.

Tokenized securities may be where they reclaim ground.

Unlike crypto exchanges, traditional venues still hold structural advantages:

- issuer relationships

- listing infrastructure

- deep liquidity pools

- regulatory frameworks

➡️ The big picture

The convergence of traditional markets and digital asset infrastructure is accelerating.

Tokenized equities are shaping up to be the next major battleground in global market structure, where exchanges, crypto platforms, and issuers compete for control of distribution, liquidity, and settlement economics.

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