Payward Adds UK Stock Tokens, but UK-Based Investors Remain Excluded
Payward, Kraken’s parent company, has launched tokenised exposure to more than 200 UK- and EU-listed companies for eligible international investors. UK-based investors remain excluded, even as shares listed in their home market join the xStocks offering.The 11 November launch makes the new tokens available through Kraken and participating xStocks Alliance platforms. Payward said the expansion leaves customer eligibility unchanged: xStocks serves more than 110 markets, but remains unavailable in the UK and to US investors.What Investors Receive According to the xStocks documentation, investors hold tracker certificates, backed one-for-one by underlying shares held with a regulated custodian.Thus, they are not direct shareholders and do not receive dividends paid on the underlying shares. Instead, they are reinvested after applicable taxes, and token balances are adjusted accordingly.The tokens can be moved between platforms that support them and compatible self-custody wallets. Secondary-market trading can continue outside regular exchange hours, depending on the venue.Prices are set by supply and demand on each platform, and the issuer does not fix them. xStocks are issued by Backed Assets (JE) Limited, a Jersey company.For customers in the European Economic Area, Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited, authorised by Cyprus’s securities regulator, provides investment services.GTN Supplies the Brokerage Infrastructure The expansion puts into operation part of the partnership Payward announced with GTN in July. GTN supplies execution and custody for the conventional securities backing the tokens.The wider partnership also covers record-keeping infrastructure for issuers. This connects the token offering to established brokerage infrastructure: the underlying shares still need to be purchased, held and accounted for, even when investors trade their exposure on-chain.July’s announcement placed Hong Kong-listed shares first, followed by UK, European and South Korean equities. UK- and EU-listed shares have instead become the first non-US assets delivered through the GTN partnership, with hundreds of Hong Kong-listed equities expected in the coming weeks.The additions take the overall xStocks catalogue beyond 1,500 assets, according to Payward. A separate distribution route is planned through the London Stock Exchange.Under its September agreement with Payward, the exchange intends to list xStocks and begin trading them on LSE 24 in 2027, subject to regulatory approval.