Kraken Expands xStocks to Tron

In the ever-evolving crypto landscape, Kraken is expanding its offering of tokenized stocks, known as xStocks, onto the Tron network, as announced on Wednesday. This initiative is in collaboration with TRON DAO and Backed, the startup responsible for the tokenization of equities such as Apple, Nvidia, and Tesla, which are currently utilized by exchanges like Bybit, Gate, and Kraken itself. Kraken’s co-CEO Arjun Sethi stated, "Expanding xStocks to three blockchains in under 60 days showcases what’s achievable when openness is prioritized from the beginning." This follows their previous deployments on the Solana and the BNB Chain networks. The xStocks allow for continuous trading, fractional ownership, and integration with decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols like Kamino and Raydium on Solana, as well as PancakeSwap and Venus Protocol on BNB Chain. While currently not available in the U.S., these digital shares pave the way for investors to access U.S. markets without typical brokerage limitations. It’s important to note that xStocks are designed as debt instruments to comply with regulations, which means they don’t grant traditional shareholder rights, including voting in governance. Tron founder Justin Sun remarked, "Tokenized equities represent a natural evolution for crypto, connecting traditional markets with blockchain. As demand for popular equities grows among a global audience, we anticipate a more efficient and accessible market." In this integration, Backed will launch xStocks on Tron as TRC-20 tokens, ensuring a full 1:1 backing for each asset listed on Kraken's platform. Soon, users will be able to manage xStocks directly within the TRON ecosystem. Adam Levi from Backed mentioned that xStocks have already achieved over $2.5 billion in combined trading volume since their launch in late June. Backed isn't the only company innovating in tokenized access to traditional assets; Robinhood has also ventured into this space by utilizing the Arbitrum Layer 2 network to offer its own onchain stocks, including options for pre-public firms like OpenAI and SpaceX, which sparked some controversy. Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet providing news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor in The Block. Crypto exchange Bitget serves as a primary investor for Foresight Ventures. The Block operates independently to deliver objective and timely information about the crypto industry.