Nasdaq revealed on Thursday that its investment division, Ventures, has committed to inject $100 million into Payward, the organization behind Kraken, while the two businesses deepen their collaboration on tokenized equities and financial market infrastructure.
Through this broader collaboration, Payward will integrate Nasdaq’s market surveillance tools throughout its collection of trading platforms, spanning cryptocurrency, traditional shares, tokenized stock, futures, and derivatives, the organization explained in a statement. According to Bloomberg reports quoting individuals with knowledge of the situation, the funding round puts Payward’s valuation at $21 billion.
Both entities are further developing Nasdaq Equity Tokens, known as NETs, targeting a debut during the second quarter of 2027. Earlier in the year, Nasdaq shared intentions to create this structure and integrate it with the xStocks framework managed by Payward.
Payward Co-CEO Arjun Sethi noted in the press release that over $2 trillion in equities flows via the American clearing infrastructure each day, adding that blockchain-based settlement eliminates delays and that the upcoming phase aims to deploy Nasdaq Equity Tokens onto continuous, 24/7 networks while safeguarding investor rights.
Tal Cohen, President of Nasdaq, stated that the enhanced alliance demonstrates their belief in Payward’s ability to help construct systems that facilitate capital flows while maintaining integrity and openness.
The organizations first established their alliance back in March 2026, when they announced plans to create a bridge for equity transformation connecting traditional regulated exchanges with distributed ledgers.
At that time, Nasdaq indicated that its tokenized share architecture and associated distributed-ledger capabilities would go live starting in the opening half of 2027.
Originally published at https://www.theblock.co/news/deals/2026-09-10-nasdaq-to-invest-100-million-in-kraken-parent-payward-as-firms-expand-partnership-414120.
