TL;DR
- Kraken launched xStocks, tokenized U.S. stocks backed 1:1 by the underlying asset, available through its spot and futures APIs.
- Partners can offer spot trading and perpetual futures with up to 20x leverage on Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, SPYx and QQQx alongside cryptocurrencies.
- The partner program pays lifetime commissions that scale based on trading volume across crypto assets and tokenized stocks.
The exchange Kraken expanded its institutional offering with the launch of xStocks, a class of tokenized assets that replicates U.S. stocks and ETFs with 1:1 backing against the underlying asset. The product is available to partners through the exchange’s existing spot and futures APIs, with no need to build additional infrastructure or manage separate accounts.
This product responds to a shift in the behavior of more sophisticated traders, who already operate interchangeably across cryptocurrency markets and traditional equities. Order management platforms, trading terminals, and multi-venue analytics tools are the direct targets of the program.
Kraken Bets on Convergence Between Crypto and Equities
Through the Kraken API Partner Program, integrated platforms can offer simultaneous exposure to stocks such as Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, SPYx and QQQx alongside BTC and ETH, all from the same account and with the same execution logic. Perpetual futures trading on xStocks supports up to 20x leverage. U.S. CME futures are excluded from the program.
Commissions for partners are lifetime and scale as trading volume grows, across both cryptocurrencies and tokenized stocks. This creates a direct incentive for integrated platforms to encourage user engagement rather than redirecting them to other venues.
No Complications and No Reasons to Migrate
Kraken’s central argument for its partners is retention: every asset class a platform cannot offer is a reason for a user to open an account elsewhere. Once that happens, the relationship with the original platform begins to fragment.
xStocks aims to close that gap without imposing significant integration costs. Partners already connected to Kraken’s APIs can expand their offering into tokenized equities without managing additional relationships with other platforms or duplicating their technical infrastructure. The program is open to trading terminals and platforms that provide advanced order management, analytics, and portfolio monitoring across multiple venues.
