Kraken has agreed to acquire Backed Finance AG as part of its plan to extend its involvement in tokenised financial markets.
The deal brings xStocks, which is Backed’s suite of tokenised equities, fully under Kraken’s control, positioning the crypto platform to further integrate these instruments into its wider product offering. Since emerging earlier in 2025, xStocks have recorded trading activity totalling more than USD 10 billion across exchanges and on-chain venues.
Backed will now operate within Kraken’s framework, giving the company additional resources to respond to rising institutional interest in tokenised equities and to scale its issuance and compliance processes. According to representatives from Kraken, combining issuance, trading and settlement under one structure is intended to establish a more unified framework for tokenised instruments, which they described as a necessary step for developing more programmable market infrastructure.
Expansion of tokenised equity access
xStocks currently provides exposure to over 60 equities and ETFs, each backed by corresponding underlying assets. The tokens operate on Solana and Ethereum, with additional integrations planned on TON, Tron, Mantle and BNB Chain. Trading is available both through Kraken and directly on-chain, enabling continuous, cross-market access that links traditional and digital asset environments. The tokens can also be held in self-custody wallets and were designed for use across multiple blockchain networks.
The acquisition follows earlier joint work through the xStocks Alliance, an initiative involving blockchain foundations, trading venues and consumer-focused applications. Kraken has indicated that it intends to expand this network further to improve interoperability and liquidity for tokenised equities.
Officials from Kraken stated that the transaction is part of a general strategy to increase on-chain access to real-world assets. They added that the integration of Backed’s infrastructure will support future developments in tokenised products beyond equities and will allow xStocks to be incorporated into services such as the company’s global money app, Krak.
Backed’s leadership noted that the firm, founded in 2021, built its tokenisation model to connect crypto and traditional markets, and said the acquisition would accelerate its expansion under Kraken’s larger operational structure.
