TLDR
- Nasdaq’s venture arm invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken
- The deal values Payward at $21 billion
- Kraken will distribute tokenized Nasdaq-listed stocks on its platform, with full shareholder voting rights
- Payward will adopt Nasdaq’s surveillance technology across its crypto, equities and futures venues
- The deal follows a $200 million investment from Deutsche Börse in April and a Kraken partnership with the London Stock Exchange
Nasdaq has invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken. The deal was announced Thursday and values Payward at $21 billion.
Source: https://t.co/oIhF95iOUK
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) September 10, 2026
The investment was made through Nasdaq’s venture arm. It builds on a partnership between the two companies that was first announced in March.
Kraken to Offer Tokenized Stocks
As part of the deal, Kraken will distribute tokenized versions of Nasdaq-listed stocks on its own platform. Users will be able to buy and hold these stocks in tokenized form while keeping the same voting rights as regular equity holders.
Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi said the next phase of the collaboration is planned to advance Nasdaq Equity Tokens onto rails that do not close, with shareholder rights intact.
Payward had been seeking new capital since at least May, when reports suggested it was looking to raise funds at a $20 billion valuation. The final deal came in slightly higher.
Nasdaq views the investment as a way to support its development of tokenized market infrastructure. The exchange filed a tokenization proposal with the US Securities and Exchange Commission a year ago.
Payward will also adopt Nasdaq’s surveillance technology. This will cover its crypto, equities, tokenized equities, futures and options venues.
The deal comes about a month after Nasdaq shared plans to acquire Level Markets as part of its push into always-on markets.
Other Exchange Operators Moving in the Same Direction
Nasdaq is not alone in this push. The New York Stock Exchange is building its own venue for 24/7 trading of tokenized stocks and ETFs.
Earlier this month, Kraken partnered with the London Stock Exchange to launch access to 24/5 trading of tokenized stocks tracking leading UK equity products. That service is expected to start in 2027.
In April, Deutsche Börse invested $200 million in Payward. That deal was also focused on blockchain-based securities and tokenized investment products.
The total distributed value of tokenized stocks now stands at more than $2.9 billion, according to data from RWA.xyz. That figure is up 7.4% over the past month.
The investment marks another step in Nasdaq’s effort to connect traditional stock markets with blockchain infrastructure and round-the-clock trading.
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