Nasdaq has invested $100 million into Payward, the parent company of the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken. This deal values the organization at $21 billion. The investment is part of a strategic initiative by the electronic bourse to expand its presence in the tokenized assets market.
Under the terms of the agreement, Kraken will list tokenized versions of stocks currently traded on Nasdaq. Additionally, Payward plans to integrate Nasdaq's proprietary surveillance technology across its various trading venues, which include cryptocurrency, equities, futures, and options platforms.
This move follows a previous partnership between the two companies established in March. Nasdaq has also recently announced plans to acquire Level Markets to support its development of round-the-clock trading systems. The exchange had previously filed a tokenization proposal with the SEC.
Payward continues to attract significant institutional interest. In April, Deutsche Borse invested $200 million in the company to facilitate access to blockchain-based securities. Furthermore, Kraken recently partnered with the London Stock Exchange to offer 24/5 trading of tokenized UK equities starting in 2027.
