Nasdaq has proposed a $100 million investment in Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, as the two companies plan to develop tokenized versions of stocks. The proposal remains subject to confirmation of its terms and completion.

Nasdaq Ventures agrees to invest in Payward

On September 10, 2026, Nasdaq announced that its investment arm, Nasdaq Ventures, had agreed to invest $100 million in Payward. Nasdaq said Wells Fargo acted as its exclusive capital markets adviser on the transaction.

The announcement describes an agreement to invest, not a completed transaction. It does not confirm that the funds have changed hands. A syndicated Quartz report carried by Yahoo Finance used “invests” in its headline, but Nasdaq’s own wording refers to an agreement rather than a closed deal.

Nasdaq’s official announcement is available here. The original report was published by CoinLineup.

Payward, Kraken and tokenized equities

Nasdaq identifies Payward as the parent company of Kraken, one of the world’s larger cryptocurrency exchanges. The proposal names Payward—not Kraken directly—as the recipient of the proposed funds. The announcement does not describe an acquisition of Kraken or a change to the exchange’s day-to-day operations.

The proposed investment builds on existing ties between the companies. Nasdaq and Payward expect to launch Nasdaq Equity Tokens, or NETs, in the second quarter of 2027. NETs are digital tokens designed to represent shares of stock. The second-quarter 2027 timing is an expectation, not a confirmed launch date.

Nasdaq said an earlier NET framework was built to connect with Payward’s xStocks ecosystem, its existing tokenized-stock product, while preserving intended issuer and investor rights. Nasdaq’s Digital Liquidity Networks markets business is leading the collaboration. The next phase is intended to advance global distribution, trading and post-trade capabilities for tokenized equities.

Payward will also adopt Nasdaq surveillance technology across its trading venues. The coverage will include crypto, equities, tokenized equities, futures and options. Surveillance systems are used to help identify market abuse, including manipulation.

Settlement rationale and executive comments

Payward Co-CEO Arjun Sethi presented settlement efficiency as part of the rationale for tokenized markets. He said that buys and sells net down by about 98%, while a clearing house holds $10 billion to $20 billion in collateral against the remaining amount during the settlement wait. Sethi added that reducing the settlement period from two days to one in 2024 released $3 billion.

Those figures represent Sethi’s rationale and have not been independently checked against clearinghouse data.

Tal Cohen, President of Nasdaq, linked the collaboration to market trust, saying:

This partnership advances our work on Nasdaq Equity Tokens and helps build a more connected financial system while preserving the trust, transparency and integrity that underpin capital formation.

— Tal Cohen, President of Nasdaq

Investment terms remain unconfirmed

Several important details are not included in Nasdaq’s announcement. These include the structure of the investment, any ownership stake Nasdaq would receive and how Payward intends to use the funds. Each remains subject to source verification.

An unconfirmed figure circulating in reports values Payward at $21 billion. Quartz attributed that figure to CNBC, but Nasdaq’s announcement does not disclose a valuation. A Yahoo Finance report carried the “invests” wording in its headline.

No regulatory filing or approval order has been published. The second-quarter 2027 launch window should therefore be treated as an expected timeframe rather than a guaranteed date. Tokenized-equity products may also face regulations affecting where and how they operate.

The proposal comes as Nasdaq expands its cryptocurrency-related activities on several fronts. Regulators recently approved rules for Nasdaq Texas commodity trusts, while Nasdaq listing standards have put pressure on companies such as DeFi Technologies over its bid price. Tokenized assets also overlap with broader stablecoin initiatives, including PayPal’s support for PYUSD-backed tokens.

For Kraken users, the proposal does not immediately change their accounts or holdings. It represents a longer-term plan to bring stock-like tokens onto cryptocurrency infrastructure. The next significant milestones will be whether the investment closes and whether NETs launch as expected.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital-asset markets carry significant risk.