Nasdaq Invests $100M in Payward at $21B Valuation
Nasdaq has invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of Kraken, at a valuation of $21 billion. The investment is part of an expanded partnership between the two companies, which aims to develop infrastructure for connecting regulated equity markets with blockchain networks through the xStocks ecosystem.
Payward will deploy Nasdaq's market surveillance technology across its trading venues covering crypto, equities, tokenized equities, futures, and options. The technology is expected to support market integrity and investor confidence as Payward operates across more asset classes.
Nasdaq Equity Tokens (NETs) are also set to launch in the second quarter of 2027, with the companies working together on the project first announced earlier this year. The initial partnership called for an equities transformation gateway connecting Nasdaq's regulated market infrastructure with Payward's xStocks system.
Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi stated that 'onchain settlement removes the wait' and that the next phase of the collaboration will advance NETs onto rails that do not close, with shareholder rights intact.'