Digital assets trading and investing platform Kraken announced that have agreed to acquire Backed Finance AG, the company driving the issuance of xStocks, the leading industry standard for tokenized equities. The acquisition will accelerate the global adoption of xStocks; unifying issuance, trading and settlement to enable “open capital markets infrastructure for everyone.”
xStocks has reportedly seen steady adoption since its debut earlier this year, surpassing “$10 billion in combined exchange and onchain trading volume within six months.”
This acquisition gives Backed access to the “capital and resources needed to scale and capitalize on adoption and institutional demand for tokenized equities.”
Bringing Backed into their ecosystem also allows “alignment on strategy and investment priorities, unlocking the economic potential of xStocks.”
Together, Kraken and Backed will now aim to accelerate xStocks’ expansion, bringing tokenized equities to new markets and “extending their reach into everyday financial experiences.”
The acquisition lays the groundwork for future advancements in tokenized assets beyond equities, advancing their role in “building open, interoperable financial infrastructure.”
xStocks currently offers exposure to over “60 tokenized equities and ETFs backed 1:1 by the underlying asset.”
The tokens are live on Solana and Ethereum, with “integrations on TON, Tron, Mantle and BNB Chain coming.”
Investors can trade 24 hours a day, five days a week on Kraken, or directly onchain 24/7, creating a “continuous bridge between traditional and crypto markets.”
xStocks can now be self-custodied and were reportedly designed for “multi-chain composability, keeping the infrastructure open and usable across the broader ecosystem.”
Through the xStocks Alliance, Kraken and Backed have “built an ecosystem of partners spanning blockchain foundations, trading venues, and consumer applications.”
With this acquisition, we plan to further expand this ecosystem, “enhancing interoperability and liquidity for tokenized equities across the industry.”
Arjun Sethi, Kraken Co-CEO said that integrating Backed into Kraken strengthens the core architecture required “for open and programmable capital markets.”
Unifying issuance, trading and settlement under “one framework ensures the infrastructure for tokenized assets remains transparent, reliable and globally accessible.”
This is foundational work for the “next era of market structure.”
This is bigger than giving people exposure “to U.S. equities, it’s about redefining what it means to own assets in the digital era.”
Backed’s team and infrastructure will become part of Kraken, strengthening issuance and compliance capabilities while “expanding the reach and utility of tokenized assets beyond the crypto ecosystem.”
Kraken plans to integrate xStocks deeply into its product suite — including Krak, its global money app — “allowing customers to hold and spend in tokenized equities.”
Adam Levi, Backed Co-Founder has said that Backed’s rise to becoming the so-called standard for tokenized equities is “a testament to focus, efficiency, and execution.”
Established back in 2021, the team built a compliant and “scalable solution that bridges crypto and traditional finance.”
Now, with Kraken’s scale elevating that vision, they “can accelerate the expansion of infrastructure designed to democratize financial access.”
The acquisition of Backed builds on their recent expansion via acquisitions such as Breakout, Small Exchange and NinjaTrader.
Their vertically integrated architecture — covering “exchange matching, custody, clearing, settlement, market data and wallet services — allows deployment of new asset classes and features while maintaining industry-leading security and regulatory rigor.”
With this structure in place, they are “positioned to expand tokenized equities and other real-world assets globally on open, interoperable rails.”
This combination reportedly represents a another step in their strategy “to bring real-world assets onchain and make capital markets work for everyone, everywhere.”
