Payward, the parent company of Kraken, deployed its first batch of tokenized UK and European Union equities on xStocks on Wednesday, November 11, the framework's largest expansion beyond US listings so far. The launch takes xStocks past 1,500 tokenized assets.
What the first wave covers
The first batch includes more than 200 of the most actively traded companies listed in the UK and EU, with further listings to be tokenized on a rolling basis. Names include HSBC, Shell, LVMH and Airbus, according to
Payward's post on X.
- Each token is backed 1:1 by the underlying share, bought and held at a regulated custodian for as long as the token trades
- The tokens trade on Kraken and through xStocks Alliance platforms from day one
- They are embedded in the DeFi ecosystems where xStocks already trade: Solana, Ethereum, TON, Ink, X Layer and other chains
- They are offered in 110+ markets, but not to investors in the UK or the US
"A portfolio should not have borders or trading hours," said Mark Greenberg, Payward's Chief Commercial Officer. "Tokenizing every other international market is the next step."
xStocks by the numbers
xStocks launched over a year ago with tokenized US stocks and ETFs, each backed 1:1 by the underlying asset. The figures Payward reported with today's expansion:
Metric | Value |
|---|---|
Tokenized assets | 1,500+ |
Assets under management | $1.1B+ |
Total transaction volume | $45B+ |
Unique holders | 550,000+ |
Markets where available | 110+ |
GTN's role and what comes next
The UK and EU are the first markets delivered under the partnership between Payward Services and GTN, which handles global execution and custody of the traditional assets behind each token. Payward says that structure let it tokenize and deploy hundreds of assets in a matter of weeks.
- Hundreds of Hong Kong-listed equities will be tokenized in the coming weeks
- Further international markets will follow after Hong Kong
- Today's launch delivers on the plan to tokenize the top 100 London-listed equities, agreed under Payward's partnership with the London Stock Exchange
- In 2027, subject to regulatory approval, the LSE intends to list xStocks and start trading them on LSE 24
Who can buy them
xStocks are issued by Backed Assets (JE) Limited, a Jersey company, and offered to eligible Kraken customers through Payward Digital Solutions Ltd., licensed by the Bermuda Monetary Authority. In the EEA, investment services are provided by Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited, authorised by CySEC under licence 342/17.
Distribution and eligibility are unchanged by the expansion: xStocks remain unavailable to UK investors, are not offered in the US or to US persons, and are not registered with any local securities regulator. If you are in the UK, you cannot buy any of the new tokens, including HSBC or Shell, through xStocks.