Kraken’s parent expands xStocks with 200+ tokenized UK & EU stocks

Payward, the parent company behind Kraken, has expanded its xStocks platform with tokenized versions of more than 200 equities listed in the United Kingdom and the European Union. The update gives eligible traders access to the new instruments on Kraken as well as on participating platforms within the xStocks Alliance.

According to a Payward press release, the tokenized securities are backed on a one-to-one basis by shares held with a regulated custodian. However, Payward also said the tokens remain unavailable to investors in the UK, underscoring how geography and eligibility rules continue to shape access to tokenized stock products.

Key takeaways

• Payward’s xStocks added 200+ tokenized equities across the UK and EU, with trading available on Kraken and member xStocks Alliance platforms.
• Tokens are designed to be backed one-to-one by shares held with a regulated custodian, according to Payward.
• UK availability differs from EU access: Payward states the tokens remain unavailable to investors in the UK.
• The expansion includes DAX exposure, covering tokenized shares of all 40 companies in Germany’s benchmark index.
• xStocks is now positioned as a larger tokenized-equities venue, with Payward citing more than $45 billion in cumulative transaction volume and 550,000+ unique holders.

What Payward is adding to xStocks

In the announcement, Payward said Wednesday that the latest listings allow eligible users to trade newly issued xStocks tokens representing more than 200 stocks. Trading is enabled on Kraken and on other platforms that participate in the xStocks Alliance, giving the product broader reach than a single exchange.

The company’s distribution model remains tightly regulated by market access. While Payward described the equities as listed in the UK and EU, it also explicitly stated that the tokens “remain unavailable to investors in the UK.” For investors, this means the practical impact of the “UK and EU” labeling depends on where they are allowed to access tokenized products.

DAX coverage expands via Deutsche Börse’s ecosystem

One of the most significant components of the update is the inclusion of Germany’s DAX index. A separate announcement from Deutsche Börse said the expansion includes tokenized shares for all 40 companies in the DAX, mentioning major constituents such as SAP, Siemens, Allianz, and Deutsche Telekom.

Deutsche Börse further stated that those tokens are available for trading on its affiliated 360X platform and that 24/7 trading support is available on selected venues. The move matters because it links tokenized equities to a venue that can offer continuous trading conditions, potentially narrowing the gap between traditional market hours and the expectations of crypto-native traders.

How xStocks tokens are structured and what investors receive

Payward said xStocks tokens are backed one-to-one by shares held with a regulated custodian. That backing is the backbone of the product’s promise: the token is intended to track the economic performance of the underlying equity rather than create a separate, unmoored derivative exposure.

Kraken’s xStocks risk disclosure, linked in the announcement, also clarifies what holders do not receive. Kraken states that xStocks tokens provide exposure to the shares’ performance without voting rights and without legal claims to the underlying stock. In practice, this means token holders should not expect governance features typical of direct share ownership, even if the tokens are economically tied to the equities’ value.

Scale and competitive positioning in tokenized stocks

Payward positioned the update as a continuation of the platform’s growth. It said the latest expansion brings xStocks’ catalog to more than 1,500 tokenized assets. The company also cited reported cumulative transaction volume of more than $45 billion and over 550,000 unique holders, framing xStocks as one of the more established tokenized-equities offerings.

Market data referenced in the release from Token Terminal put xStocks’ market capitalization at $1.1 billion. Token Terminal also estimates that this figure is about 22% of the $4.9 billion in tokenized stocks it tracks. In that dataset, xStocks ranks third behind Binance bStocks at $1.5 billion and Ondo Finance at $1.4 billion.

For readers, the competitive implication is straightforward: tokenized stocks are consolidating around a handful of major issuers and platforms, and distribution—through partnerships like the xStocks Alliance and venue integrations such as Deutsche Börse’s 360X—can be as decisive as product availability itself.

What to watch next

Payward said it plans to add hundreds of Hong Kong-listed equities in the coming weeks. The key question for market participants will be how eligibility and custody-backed token structures are handled as listings broaden—particularly regarding regional restrictions and whether 24/7 trading access continues to expand across additional venues.