The London Stock Exchange and Payward, the parent company of Kraken, have entered a partnership to bring the 100 largest London-listed companies onchain through xStocks, extending the tokenized-equity platform beyond its existing international markets.

The 100 largest London-listed companies are expected to become available as xStocks in the coming weeks. Each token will be backed 1:1 by its underlying security and will be transferable between supported exchanges, self-custody wallets and onchain applications.

The move places one of Europe's largest traditional exchange groups alongside a growing list of incumbent market operators building blockchain-based distribution channels for equities. Regulated tokenization efforts have accelerated as exchanges and brokers seek to extend trading beyond conventional market hours and reach investors through digital-asset infrastructure.

Top London Stocks Expand xStocks Beyond U.S. Equities

The London rollout will provide eligible investors in more than 110 countries with 24/7 access to tokenized exposure to some of the UK's largest public companies. UK-based investors remain excluded, however, as xStocks are not currently offered in the country. The exclusion underscores that tokenized-equity offerings still face jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction regulatory constraints even as platforms scale internationally.

To date, xStocks have processed more than $40 billion in total transaction volume, including nearly $20 billion settled onchain, across more than 200,000 holders. The platform now covers more than 700 tokenized equities and ETFs, with assets transferable across multiple blockchain networks.

Kraken has also broadened the tokens' utility beyond spot exposure by allowing selected xStocks to be used as collateral for futures and margin positions among eligible users.

LSE 24 Plans xStocks Trading in 2027

The London Stock Exchange plans to list xStocks on LSE 24 during 2027, subject to regulatory approval. The venue will operate separately from the LSE Main Market and is designed for near-continuous weekday trading.

LSE 24 will run from 17:00 to 07:50, with a 30-minute end-of-day processing pause between 18:30 and 19:00. Client testing is scheduled by the end of 2026, while exchange-traded products are expected to become the venue's first asset class during the first half of 2027.

The partnership extends Payward's effort to connect tokenized equities with regulated exchange infrastructure. An earlier partnership with Nasdaq is developing a separate gateway between issuer-sponsored securities and blockchain-based distribution. Key milestones to watch include the timing of the xStocks listing on LSE 24, the outcome of the regulatory approval process, and whether UK availability of xStocks changes as the venue develops.

LSE and Payward Explore Native Onchain Shares

The collaboration also encompasses a second structure that would go beyond today's 1:1-backed xStocks model. Payward and the LSE will explore native LSE-issued equity tokens carrying the same rights and full fungibility as traditional shares.

That model would preserve conventional shareholder rights while moving issuance, trading and servicing onto blockchain infrastructure. LSEG's Digital Securities Depository is being developed to handle the issuance, recording, transfer, asset servicing and settlement of tokenized securities within regulated market infrastructure. If realized, native issuance would mark a shift from tokens that reference conventional shares toward securities that originate onchain within regulated infrastructure.