Kraken, the renowned cryptocurrency exchange, has unveiled a new offering: tokenized equity perpetual futures, now available on its regulated derivatives platform. This innovative product allows qualified international clients to engage in 24/7 trading with leveraged exposure to prominent U.S. stock indexes, gold, and major corporations such as Nvidia, Apple, and Tesla.
Announced on Tuesday, these contracts are perpetual futures, meaning they do not have an expiry date and are exclusively accessible to clients outside the United States. Kraken has positioned these products as the first-ever regulated tokenized equity perpetual futures available on a derivatives platform.
Built on the xStocks framework, these contracts employ blockchain technology to create digital representations of publicly traded stocks and ETFs. Rather than holding the actual shares, Kraken's contracts are linked to tokenized equity benchmarks, enhancing the burgeoning market for tokenized equities. These digital instruments replicate traditional stocks and offer extended trading hours beyond conventional exchanges. By integrating them with perpetual futures, Kraken introduces leverage and continuous liquidity.
Currently accessible in over 110 countries, these contracts offer up to 20x leverage. Kraken has indicated plans to introduce additional tokenized stock and ETF contracts in the future, pending regulatory approval. The clearing and execution of these contracts are managed through Kraken's derivatives platform, and they remain unavailable to U.S. clients.
This development comes on the heels of Kraken's acquisition of Backed Finance AG, the creator of xStocks, last December. Kraken announced that xStocks has achieved over $25 billion in cumulative transaction volume within eight months of its launch.
Kraken's initiative is part of a broader trend among major U.S.-founded crypto exchanges to diversify into traditional financial markets. Earlier this year, Kraken completed a $1.5 billion acquisition of NinjaTrader, a futures platform, expanding its reach into traditional derivatives. In September, the company introduced Backed’s xStocks in Europe for eligible investors.
Kraken is not alone in this venture. In June, Gemini, another American crypto exchange, launched tokenized Strategy shares in the EU. Following this, Gemini expanded its offerings to include U.S.-listed companies like BlackRock, Visa, and American Express.
Additionally, Coinbase, the largest U.S. crypto exchange by trading volume, has recently launched commission-free stock and ETF trading for U.S. users, integrating equities with digital assets in its app as part of its strategy to become a comprehensive financial platform.