Kraken-backed xStocks Launches Tokenized US Stocks on TON/Telegram

Published: 2025-12-28 16:30:46 |

Kraken-backed xStocks has launched on The Open Network (TON), enabling Telegram users outside the U.S. to trade tokenized US stocks and ETFs inside the chat app. xStocks already operates on Solana and Ethereum with roughly $180M in assets across ~50,000 wallets, and the TON rollout targets Telegram’s native audience to broaden retail access to on-chain equities. Tokens are marketed as claim tickets — fully collateralized custodial securities held in Switzerland and Jersey — and Kraken’s recent acquisition of Backed Finance centralizes issuance, trading and settlement within its stack. The service excludes U.S. users and carries legal, custody and smart-contract risks: token holders receive creditor claims rather than regulated shareholder rights. For traders, expect greater retail access, cross-chain market fragmentation (Solana, Ethereum, TON), increased competition in RWA tokenization, and new counterparty/technical risks. Short-term impacts may include higher demand and trading volumes for linked tokens on TON/Telegram; long-term effects include intensified platform competition and heightened regulatory scrutiny. Key SEO keywords: tokenized stocks, TON, Telegram, xStocks, Kraken, RWA tokenization.

Neutral

The news is neutral for crypto market prices overall but has mixed implications for specific assets. Short-term, the TON rollout may be bullish for TON-related activity and tokens tied to xStocks markets because added retail access on Telegram can raise trading volumes and demand on that chain. It could also modestly benefit ecosystems previously hosting xStocks (SOL, ETH) through cross-chain flows. However, risks limit a straightforward price boost: issuance is creditor-based (not shareholder rights), U.S. exclusion reduces addressable market, and custody/regulatory and smart-contract risks raise counterparty concerns that can cap speculative inflows. In the long term, increased competition in RWA tokenization and likely regulatory scrutiny can pressure valuations of specialized tokenization platforms or associated tokens. Overall, expected net price effect is muted — localized demand increases for TON and related on-chain trading pairs, balanced by counterparty, legal and fragmentation risks that restrain broader bullish momentum.