Nasdaq has agreed to invest $100 million in Payward, the parent company of Kraken, in a move that will deepen an existing partnership focused on tokenised equities.
The proposed investment will be made through Nasdaq Ventures. Alongside the funding, Payward plans to introduce Nasdaq’s market-surveillance technology across its trading businesses, extending the relationship into the monitoring of activity across multiple markets.
The companies said they would continue developing the operational and commercial systems required for Nasdaq Equity Tokens (NETs). Payward’s venues covered by the surveillance agreement include crypto, equities, tokenised equities, futures and options.
The agreement represents a planned investment rather than a completed transaction. Nasdaq and Payward have not disclosed a closing date, Payward’s valuation, the ownership stake Nasdaq could receive or any governance rights. The available terms therefore do not indicate how much influence Nasdaq may have over the company.
The partnership began before the proposed investment. In March, the two companies announced plans for an equities transformation gateway linking Nasdaq’s proposed issuer-sponsored tokens with Payward’s xStocks tokenised-equity ecosystem in eligible jurisdictions.
A 10 September announcement said the next stage would focus on the global distribution, trading and post-trade systems needed to support NETs. The surveillance deal would give Payward a role in both the transaction infrastructure and the monitoring arrangements for the planned tokens.
However, the companies have not said which Payward venues would receive the surveillance tools first or when the deployment would be completed.
Nasdaq has described NETs as issuer-sponsored tokens designed to retain issuer control and the legal and regulatory rights associated with the underlying shares. Payward’s xStocks ecosystem is intended to connect with that structure.
The investment announcement does not state that it changes the rights attached to existing third-party tokenised-stock products. Those products should not therefore be treated as equivalent to NETs.
Nasdaq and Payward now expect NETs to launch in the second quarter of 2027. The latest agreement does not put the tokens into circulation immediately, but gives Payward a broader role in the planned system.
Payward is expected to act as a gateway and settlement participant for NETs, while also becoming a customer for Nasdaq’s surveillance technology. It is additionally the subject of the proposed $100 million Nasdaq investment.
For Kraken’s tokenised-equity plans, the immediate effect is closer institutional backing for infrastructure that is still under development. The companies must now turn the expanded partnership into an operational link between issuer-sponsored tokens and on-chain markets in time for the stated 2027 timetable.
