Nasdaq invests $100M in Payward for tokenized equities

Nasdaq’s venture capital arm has invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, to accelerate development of tokenized equities and related market infrastructure.

The funding is part of a wider partnership to build the trading, distribution and post-trade systems Nasdaq and Payward say are needed to support digital shares. The two firms first announced plans for Nasdaq Equity Tokens, or NETs, earlier this year and expect a launch in the second quarter of 2027.

Under the agreement, Payward will integrate Nasdaq’s market surveillance technology across its trading venues. The surveillance tools will be applied to crypto markets, listed equities, tokenized equities, futures and options to monitor trading activity and support compliance as tokenized products move into regulated markets.

Nasdaq said the next phase of the collaboration will expand capabilities for global distribution, secondary trading and post-trade processing so that tokenized securities can operate across different trading environments while preserving issuer and investor rights.

Earlier this month, another exchange operator announced a separate partnership with Payward to issue tokenized versions of its largest listed companies, reflecting multiple market participants working on digitizing traditional securities.

Tokenized equities are digital tokens recorded on a blockchain that represent ownership in a company. Project teams aim to ensure those tokens carry the same legal rights as conventional shares while enabling settlement and post-trade functions on distributed ledgers or interoperable systems.

Tal Cohen, president of Nasdaq, described the coming market phase as one in which capital and assets move more efficiently across the financial system with sustained liquidity. He added that expanding the relationship with Payward will help build the infrastructure required for those outcomes.