TL;DR:
- Kraken offers U.S. stocks to clients in the European Economic Area, becoming the only native crypto platform combining traditional and tokenized equities.
- The service allows trading of over 7,000 U.S. stocks, more than 600 crypto assets and over 700 xStocks from the same account, with no trading commissions.
- xStocks recorded over $38 billion in total volume since their launch in June 2025 and represent 77% of the segment alongside Ondo Finance and Binance.
Kraken is expanding its equities business in the European Economic Area (EEA), launching its U.S. stock offering for eligible clients across all member countries of the bloc. The service had begun rolling out quietly in Germany, the Netherlands and France in recent days, and as of today it is available across the entire EEA, a company spokesperson confirmed.
The central proposition of the launch is the coexistence within a single regulated account of traditional stocks listed in the U.S. and their tokenized versions, known as xStocks. The platform offers more than 7,000 stocks, over 600 crypto assets and more than 700 xStocks, with no trading commissions, subject to applicable terms.
Kraken: Traditional and Tokenized Stocks, Side by Side
Mark Greenberg, Chief Business Officer of Payward —Kraken’s parent company— and head of Payward Services, noted that clients can choose how they want exposure to the same underlying asset without moving capital or switching platforms. The service will be available on Kraken Pro for desktop and mobile, as well as on the exchange’s mobile app.
Operations in the EEA fall under the responsibility of Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited, a Cypriot investment firm authorized under MiFID II, the European directive regulating markets in financial instruments.
Access will not be automatically unlocked for all existing clients within the bloc: users will need to accept additional terms and conditions before trading stocks.
Expansion of the Real-World Asset Market
Tokenized stocks continue to establish themselves as a key asset class within the industry. Their share of the real-world asset (RWA) market climbed to 15%, three times the level recorded at the start of the year, with a total market capitalization close to $2.8 billion. Together with Ondo Finance and Binance, Kraken’s xStocks account for 77% of that segment.
Kraken has managed to differentiate itself from competitors such as Bitpanda, which offers U.S. stocks but not tokenized ones, and platforms like Crypto.com or Robinhood, which do operate xStocks in Europe but not traditional stocks. The company indicated that it plans to extend the combined service to additional markets in the coming months.
