Nasdaq Ventures agreed on September 10 to invest $100 million in Payward, the parent company of Kraken. The deal values Payward at $21 billion. It also expands a partnership the two firms first announced in March 2026. Both companies now expect to launch Nasdaq Equity Tokens in the second quarter of 2027. The announcement lands as US regulators finish clearing the legal path for tokenized shares.
Nasdaq Ventures is investing $100M in Payward as we advance tokenization together with the @Nasdaq Equity Token (NET) framework.
— Payward (@Payward) September 10, 2026
Equities on-chain only works if it's built to institutional standard from day one. We're building it with the company that's run public market…
Inside the $100 Million Agreement
The investment carries three distinct components, and the capital is only the most visible one. First, Nasdaq Ventures takes an equity position in Payward at a $21 billion valuation. That figure sits above the roughly $20 billion Payward reportedly sought earlier in 2026. Second, both firms will keep building the operational and commercial infrastructure behind the Nasdaq Equity Token framework. Third, Payward will adopt Nasdaq’s market surveillance technology across its venues. Notably, Nasdaq Ventures invests specifically in technologies supporting capital market evolution, so this is a strategic position rather than a passive one.
What a Nasdaq Equity Token Actually Is
A Nasdaq Equity Token is a blockchain representation of a real listed share, not a synthetic derivative. Nasdaq designed the framework to put issuers at the center of token design. Consequently, the token carries the same ticker, the same price, and the same investor rights as the ordinary share. Kraken confirmed that tokenized shares will convey voting rights identical to those on Nasdaq’s traditional exchange. Importantly, these trades still clear and settle through the Depository Trust Company in token form. The legal wrapper does not change, which is the entire point of the design.
The Settlement Math Behind the Push
Payward Co-CEO Arjun Sethi framed the case in plain operational terms. He noted that more than $2 trillion in stock trades move through the US clearing system daily. Buys and sells then net down by roughly 98 percent. Meanwhile, the clearing house holds $10 billion to $20 billion in collateral against the remainder while it waits to settle. Sethi pointed out that cutting settlement from two days to one in 2024 released $3 billion. As a result, his argument is simple: onchain settlement removes the wait entirely. That capital efficiency, rather than retail speculation, is what draws institutional attention.
Why Nasdaq Picked Kraken’s xStocks
Kraken brings distribution and a working onchain layer, which Nasdaq does not have internally. The xStocks framework has processed roughly $40 billion in cumulative volume since June 2025. It also counts more than 200,000 holders and covers dozens of blue-chip stocks and ETFs. Under the partnership, the two firms are building what they call an equities transformation gateway. Payward Services handles KYC and AML checks, and acts as the primary settlement layer for token transactions. Additionally, xStocks lets eligible clients move tokenized equities between permissioned institutional venues and open blockchain networks.
Surveillance Is the Quiet Half of the Deal
The surveillance agreement received less coverage, yet it may matter just as much. Payward will deploy Nasdaq’s market surveillance technology across crypto, equities, tokenized equities, futures, and options. Nasdaq has sold that same technology to regulated exchanges and regulators for years. Therefore, the arrangement effectively imports traditional market integrity standards into a crypto-native venue. For institutional allocators evaluating tokenized equities, surveillance coverage answers a real diligence question. It also strengthens Payward’s position ahead of any public listing.
The Road to 2027
Regulatory groundwork is largely in place after a busy year. The SEC approved Nasdaq’s proposal to trade securities in tokenized form in March 2026. That approval followed a rule filing Nasdaq submitted back in September 2025. Separately, the SEC’s 2026 staff statement treats tokenized equities the same as ordinary equity securities under federal law. Nasdaq’s tokenized settlement and 23/5 trading changes are scheduled to go live on December 6, 2026. Payward, meanwhile, reported $508 million in second-quarter adjusted revenue, up 17 percent year over year, with its own IPO now pointed toward 2027.
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