Payward Services, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has announced a significant expansion of its xStocks tokenized equities framework. This will enable retail investors worldwide to participate in US-listed initial public offerings (IPOs) at the offering price, providing equal access to small and large investors.
The xStocks mechanism allows customers to submit non-binding offers for IPO shares before listing day, and allocations are finalized on listing day. The shares are then tokenized at a 1:1 ratio to the underlying share and distributed to eligible customers at the IPO price through their preferred platform.
This development is significant because it provides retail investors with access to foreign IPOs at the offering price, which has previously been a privilege reserved for institutional participants. According to Mark Greenberg, global head of Payward Services, this change will help break down geographical and wealth-based barriers in capital markets.