Kraken to launch tokenized versions of more than 50 popular U.S. stocks and ETFs

Kraken, a U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, is getting ready to launch tokenized versions of more than 50 popular U.S. stocks and ETFs

Kraken, the U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, is preparing to introduce tokenized versions of over 50 popular U.S. stocks and ETFs to customers outside the United States. The initiative will commence with the integration of major names such as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:SPY), and SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD) on the Solana (CRYPTO:SOL) chain.

As Solana gains attention for this initiative, the SOL price is also showing a promising aspect to investors. The addition of U.S. stocks and ETFs on Solana can act as a catalyst to push the SOL price towards $200. In the last 30 days, SOL has increased roughly 25% after it evaded another drop below $100.

This offering, called "xStocks," will be available soon in places like Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Kraken plans to start this rollout in the coming weeks.

Following the news, Solana native token SOL jumped by 4.43% to now trading for $179. This was from an intraday low of $178.25 with around 50% surge in trading volume, according to CoinMarketCap.

These tokenized assets will be available for trading 24 hours a day, seven days a week, unlike traditional stock markets that close after regular hours. Kraken will use the Solana blockchain to make this happen so investors can buy and sell whenever they want.

Kraken's partner, Backed Finance, will hold the actual shares of the stocks backing the tokens. This means that for every token traded, there is a real stock behind it. The tokens can be exchanged for the cash value of these shares at any time. This will keep the token prices closely matching the real stock prices.

Arjun Sethi, co-Chief Executive Officer of Kraken, explained that this will give international investors a cheaper and easier way to buy U.S. stocks. He mentioned, "There's a lot of friction" with current methods, which include high fees and slow settlement times. The tokenized stocks will help remove these barriers, making investing smoother for people outside the U.S.

Customers may eventually be able to transfer their xStocks to other crypto exchanges or into personal digital wallets, where they can hold them like other cryptocurrencies. They might even use these tokenized stocks as collateral for crypto loans or trading strategies. This could open new doors for investors who want more flexibility with their assets.

However, this new offering from Kraken is a bit similar to the one Binance offered in 2021 when it introduced tokenized stocks but later stopped the service due to regulatory issues. Kraken is actively working with regulators worldwide to make sure its offering follows the law in each country.

Moreover, the government is actively paying closer attention to tokenized equities, and blockchain technology can change traditional finance. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently held talks on this topic, with big companies like BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) and Robinhood (NASDAQ:HOOD) supporting the idea.