Nasdaq and Payward will continue to advance the operational and commercial infrastructure supporting Nasdaq Equity Tokens (NETs) with an expectation to launch NETs in the second quarter of 2027. Earlier this year, Nasdaq announced plans to develop NETs and introduced an accompanying framework designed to connect them with Payward's xStocks ecosystem. That announcement established a foundation for how tokenized equities can move across different market environments while preserving the rights and protections intended for issuers and investors. The next phase of the collaboration will advance the global distribution, trading and post-trade capabilities needed to support the broader adoption of tokenized equities.

“The next era of market evolution will be defined by how efficiently and seamlessly capital and assets move across the financial system with durable, high-integrity liquidity,” said Tal Cohen, President, Nasdaq. “Expanding our relationship with Payward reflects our conviction that Kraken can play an important role in building the infrastructure that supports this evolution. Our partnership advances our work on Nasdaq Equity Tokens and helps build a more connected financial system while preserving the trust, transparency and integrity that underpin capital formation.”

“More than $2 trillion of stock trades run through the U.S. clearing system every day. Buys and sells net down by about 98 percent, and the clearing house holds $10 billion to $20 billion of collateral against what is left while it waits a day to settle. Cutting that wait from two days to one in 2024 released $3 billion. On-chain settlement removes the wait. The next phase of the collaboration is planned to advance Nasdaq Equity Tokens onto rails that do not close, with shareholder rights intact,” said Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward.

As part of the expanded relationship, Payward will also adopt Nasdaq's market-leading surveillance technology across its portfolio of trading venues, including crypto, equities, tokenized equities, futures and options, expanding the collaboration to include capabilities that support market integrity and investor confidence. Together, the companies aim to combine modern tokenized market infrastructure with the safeguards needed for transparent and trusted markets at scale.

The relationship reflects Nasdaq's belief that the next phase of market evolution will depend on infrastructure that allows assets to move more seamlessly across markets while preserving the protections and standards that participants expect. Together, Nasdaq and Payward are helping define the infrastructure needed to bring those capabilities to life at scale.