Ethereum News Today: Ethereum Unlocks New Frontier as xStocks Brings 60 Equities On-Chain

XStocks, a tokenized stock product from Backed Finance, has expanded its platform to the Ethereum blockchain, adding 60 tokenized equities, including major names like NVIDIA, Amazon, Tesla, Meta, and Walmart. The move, announced on September 3, 2025, marks the next phase in the rapid growth of tokenized equities, with Kraken partnering to facilitate the integration of xStocks into Ethereum’s ecosystem. These tokenized equities are issued as ERC-20 tokens and will be fully collateralized on a 1:1 basis with the underlying assets, allowing investors to transfer them between Kraken and self-custodial wallets for on-chain activity [1].

The expansion to Ethereum follows the product’s launch on other major blockchains such as Solana, BNB Chain, and Tron. Since its initial launch in June, xStocks has generated over $3.5 billion in combined trading volume across both centralized and decentralized exchanges [2]. By leveraging Ethereum’s vast smart contract infrastructure, xStocks aims to enhance the programmability and interoperability of tokenized equities, aligning with Kraken’s vision to integrate traditional financial assets into decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. The integration also opens the door for DeFi protocols, wallets, and decentralized applications to interact with tokenized stocks, further expanding the composability of real-world assets in the blockchain space [2].

The tokenized equity market has seen significant growth, with the tokenized real-world asset (RWA) market capitalization reaching $27.9 billion as of the latest available data. Tokenized equities represent approximately $342 million of this total, or about 1.2% of the market [1]. Despite the expanding interest, tokenized equities remain in a legal gray area. Legal experts note that tokenized equities may not confer the same investor protections as holding traditional stocks, such as voting rights or direct claims on company assets. Regulators, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), have expressed concerns over the lack of oversight and the potential for regulatory fragmentation in the space [1].

The move to Ethereum also aligns with broader trends in the tokenization of traditional financial assets. Other crypto exchanges, including Gemini and Robinhood, have also introduced tokenized stocks for European and international markets. These initiatives are part of a larger effort to bring traditional financial instruments onto blockchain infrastructure, enabling round-the-clock trading and greater liquidity. However, the sector has faced pushback from stock exchanges and global regulators, who are calling for clearer oversight and stricter compliance measures to mitigate risks associated with tokenized assets [4].

Kraken and Backed emphasize that the integration of xStocks on Ethereum is a strategic step in their multi-chain approach. By supporting tokenized equities on multiple blockchains, they aim to ensure that these assets are accessible across different ecosystems, portable between wallets and protocols, and compatible with a wide range of applications. Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi described the move as a logical progression, noting Ethereum’s leadership in smart contract innovation and on-chain liquidity. Backed’s co-founder, Roberto Klein, added that the expansion to Ethereum’s mainnet would provide xStocks with access to the largest pool of on-chain liquidity and established DeFi protocols, further enhancing the product’s utility [2].

Source:

[1] Tokenized Equity Product xStocks Launches on Ethereum (https://cointelegraph.com/news/xstocks-launches-ethereum-60-tokenized-stocks-nvidia-tesla)

[2] xStocks launch on Ethereum (https://blog.kraken.com/product/xstocks/launch-on-ethereum)

[3] Kraken, Backed Bring Tokenized Equities Offering to ... (https://www.coindesk.com/business/2025/09/02/kraken-backed-bring-tokenized-equities-offering-to-ethereum-mainnet)

[4] Galaxy Digital stock goes onchain with Solana tokenization (https://cointelegraph.com/news/galaxy-digital-stock-tokenized-solana)