Kraken, a technology platform built on crypto, and Backed, an issuer of tokenized stocks, have established a strategic partnership with BNB Chain, a leading blockchain ecosystem, to expand global on-chain access to tokenized U.S. equities through the xStocks Alliance.
This collaboration integrates BNB Chain into the rapidly growing xStocks Alliance, aiming to accelerate the availability of tokenized U.S. equities for users worldwide. In the coming weeks, Kraken will enable eligible clients to deposit and withdraw xStocks on its platform via BNB Chain. Backed, a Swiss-based company founded in 2021, will deploy xStocks as BEP-20 tokens on BNB Chain. These tokens represent U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, including assets such as AAPLx, TSLAx, SPYx, and NVDAx.
BNB Chain was selected for its high performance, low transaction fees, and its position as one of the largest blockchain ecosystems, with approximately $10 billion in Total Value Locked (TVL) and an active Web3 user community. This foundation is intended to support the growth of tokenized asset adoption.
Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Kraken, commented on the development: “The response to xStocks has made one thing increasingly clear — the future of capital markets will be chain neutral, composable, and multichain by design. Expanding to BNB Chain reinforces our core belief that tokenized equities are not just digital wrappers for traditional assets — they are a foundational upgrade to the financial system itself. These instruments behave as programmable settlement primitives, unlocking atomic settlement, real-time global transferability, and composability with onchain lending, derivatives, and structured products. In a world that will inevitably be multichain, it is critical that assets like equities can move fluidly across ecosystems, protocols, and liquidity layers without being gated by jurisdiction or legacy custodial rails. As more chains integrate xStocks, we are not just expanding access — we are building the infrastructure to make equities globally accessible, usable, and interoperable for both retail and institutional capital. This is the beginning of an always-on equity market — one that is permissionless, transparent, and built for the internet.”
Adam Levi, co-founder of Backed, stated: “xStocks are built as a neutral, public-good asset class, and expanding to BNB Chain is a key step toward making them the standard for tokenized equities. Our goal is to bring traditional finance onto blockchain rails — not just by improving access, but by enabling true composability. Integrated into DeFi, tokenized equities will surpass the scale and utility of stablecoins. With BNB Chain’s global reach and deep liquidity, it’s a natural partner for advancing that vision.”
Sarah S, Head of Business Development at BNB Chain, added: “Tokenizing real-world assets on BNB Chain is a meaningful step in making global finance more accessible and transparent. Our collaboration with Kraken and Backed reflects BNB Chain’s commitment to bringing high-quality financial instruments on-chain and connecting traditional markets with decentralized finance for users around the world.”
This partnership follows Kraken’s recent launch of over 60 tokenized U.S. equities, deployed by Backed as SPL-tokens on Solana, for users in 140 countries. The integration with BNB Chain represents a further step in mainstreaming tokenized equities.
It is important to note that xStocks are not available in the U.S. or to U.S. persons, and geo-restrictions apply.
