xStocks Go Live on BNB Chain, Is This the Future of 24/7 Stock Trading?
Kraken and tokenization platform Backed are expanding their tokenized equity initiative, xStocks, beyond Solana with support for BNB Chain.
The move, announced Wednesday, marks a significant step toward the broader rollout of tokenized U.S. equities on multiple blockchain ecosystems, offering 24/7 exposure to traditional markets for global users.
BNB chain to host BEP-20 versions of tokenized equities
Through the new partnership, xStocks will be integrated into the BNB Chain ecosystem, enabling eligible Kraken users to deposit and withdraw tokenized U.S. equities as BEP-20 tokens.
This includes representations of stocks and ETFs like AAPLx, TSLAx, SPYx, and NVDAx.
The launch follows a similar rollout on Solana earlier, where over 60 tokenized equities were introduced for users in 185 countries.
BNB Chain was selected for its scalability, low fees, and strong user base.
With nearly $10 billion in total value locked and one of the most active Web3 communities, it’s positioned as a high-performance base layer to support real-world asset adoption.
Kraken’s co-CEO Arjun Sethi described the move as part of a larger strategy toward multichain access: “The future of capital markets will be chain-neutral, composable and multichain by design.”
Backed will continue to act as the infrastructure provider, deploying xStocks and ensuring compliance.
Co-founder Adam Levi said the goal is to create tokenized equities as a “public-good asset class,” emphasizing composability in DeFi as a core driver.
By allowing equities to be used with lending protocols, derivatives, and other onchain applications, Levi believes the utility of tokenized stocks could rival or surpass that of stablecoins.
Expanding global reach and composability for equities
The initiative is designed not just to replicate stocks on-chain but to offer real-time settlement, 24/7 market access, and programmable financial features that are unavailable in traditional markets.
BNB Chain’s Head of Business Development, Sarah S, noted that the collaboration with Kraken and Backed aligns with the chain’s goal to bring financial instruments on-chain while bridging TradFi and DeFi.
