Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has held significant discussions with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Crypto Task Force regarding its ambitious plans to expand into tokenized traditional assets. The meeting, which took place on August 25, 2025, included four representatives from Kraken's parent company Payward, its subsidiary Kraken Securities, and legal counsel from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP.
The agenda focused on establishing regulatory frameworks for operating a tokenized trading system in the United States, including the legal requirements for such operations and the broader benefits of asset tokenization. This meeting comes three months after Kraken launched its xStocks program, which aims to tokenize over 50 U.S. stocks and ETFs on the Solana blockchain, though initially available only to non-U.S. investors.
Regulatory scrutiny is intensifying as traditional exchange groups and global regulators push for tighter oversight of tokenized stocks. The World Federation of Exchanges has warned that these products mimic equities without offering shareholder rights or market safeguards, potentially threatening investors and market integrity. Unlike conventional equities, tokenized stocks can be traded 24/7 and often fall outside standard disclosure and reporting rules.
Despite current market limitations—the total value of tokenized stocks stands at $360 million, representing just 1.35% of the $26.5 billion tokenized real-world asset market—the growth potential is substantial. Binance Research projects the sector could reach over $1.3 trillion if even 1% of global equities become tokenized. Animoca Brands research suggests tokenization could unlock a $400 trillion traditional finance market, with Skynet projecting tokenized RWA markets could grow to $16 trillion by 2030.
Kraken's push comes amid a more favorable regulatory environment under the Trump administration's pro-crypto stance, which led to the creation of the SEC Crypto Task Force in January 2025 with Commissioner Hester Peirce as lead. The exchange is betting on significant growth, with its own survey finding that 65% of U.S. investors active in both equities and crypto believe digital assets will outperform stocks over the next decade.