The London Stock Exchange is partnering with Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, to tokenize the 100 largest companies listed on the LSE under the xStocks framework.
According to the announcement, the first London-listed xStocks will be available in the coming weeks on Kraken and other supporting xStocks Alliance platforms. The tokens are 1:1-backed representations of underlying shares and will be offered to investors in more than 110 countries, though UK-based investors will not have access at the current stage.
Subject to regulatory approval, the LSE plans to list and support trading in these xStocks on LSE 24, its extended-hours venue. LSE 24 is expected to operate Monday through Friday from 5 p.m. to 7:50 a.m., with a 30-minute pause for end-of-day processing.
Julia Hoggett, CEO of the London Stock Exchange, said: "By working with Payward, and continuing to collaborate across the market infrastructure ecosystem, we are exploring how issuers and investors can benefit from new forms of access while maintaining the standards that underpin public markets."
Payward said the broader offering will span tokenized equities from the U.S., Europe, the UK, and Hong Kong, alongside other asset classes, for LSE members. The partnership also aims to go beyond wrapped tokenized shares: Payward and the LSE will explore native equity tokens issued through LSE infrastructure, with the same rights and full fungibility as traditional shares.
Launched in June 2025 and acquired by Payward in December, xStocks has processed more than $40 billion in total volume across over 200,000 holders, including nearly $20 billion settled onchain. In July, Payward partnered with GTN to expand xStocks into Hong Kong, the UK, Europe, and South Korea. Kraken also launched U.S. stock trading alongside xStocks for European Economic Area customers through its Cyprus-regulated entity.
There is roughly $2.53 billion worth of tokenized equities in existence, according to RWA.xyz data. About $606.6 million has been tokenized by xStocks, making it the second-largest issuer after Ondo's approximately $840.4 million. Payward reported second-quarter adjusted revenue of $508 million, up 17% year-over-year, with total platform transaction volume reaching $310 billion.
