Nasdaq invests $100M in Kraken parent at $21B valuation: Report
Reported by Cointelegraph · AI-assisted summary by ChikoCorp AI News Desk
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Summary
Nasdaq’s venture arm invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, valuing it at $21 billion. As part of the investment deal, Kraken will offer tokenized versions of Nasdaq-listed stocks on its platform and adopt Nasdaq’s surveillance technology across multiple trading venues. This follows earlier partnerships between Nasdaq and Payward and recent moves by Nasdaq to expand into tokenized assets.
Why it matters
The source suggests this development is part of Nasdaq’s broader strategy to enter the tokenized asset market and expand “always-on” trading opportunities. Kraken’s offering of tokenized Nasdaq stocks could increase accessibility and liquidity for tokenized securities in the crypto space.
Key context
Nasdaq previously announced a partnership with Payward in March and filed a tokenization proposal with the SEC a year ago. Nasdaq also plans to acquire Level Markets, further pushing into continuous markets. Deutsche Börse invested $200 million in Payward in April, indicating growing institutional interest. Kraken recently partnered with the London Stock Exchange to enable 24/5 trading of tokenized UK stocks starting in 2027.
Key numbers and entities
Nasdaq invested $100 million in Payward, valuing it at $21 billion. Deutsche Börse invested $200 million in Payward earlier. The distributed value of tokenized stocks has reached more than $2.9 billion, up 7.4% over the past month.
What remains unclear
The source does not detail Nasdaq’s specific plans for integrating surveillance technology at Kraken or how tokenized stock offerings will be regulated. It also does not provide Nasdaq’s official comment on the investment or the timeline for rolling out tokenized Nasdaq-listed stocks on Kraken.