Nasdaq on the ledger: XRP’s role in the tokenised equity revolution

Nasdaq is significantly advancing its tokenized equity strategy with a $100 million investment in Payward, the parent company of Kraken, aiming to launch Nasdaq Equity Tokens (NETs) through Payward’s xStocks ecosystem by the second quarter of 2027. This initiative marks a concrete step towards integrating blockchain technology into equity markets, although the article clarifies it does not mandate the XRP Ledger or XRP for every stock transaction. Concurrently, Nasdaq secured SEC approval (Release No. 34-105047) on March 18 for a Depository Trust Company (DTC) pilot, enabling eligible securities traded on Nasdaq to be settled in tokenized form, with tokenized and conventional versions sharing an order book. This regulatory endorsement provides a clear pathway for tokenized securities within existing financial infrastructure. The broader RWA landscape is seeing diverse approaches, as evidenced by Ondo's use of DTC tokenized entitlements for its CRCLon and SPYon products, and its Solana-based tokenized stock and ETF portfolios for non-U.S. investors. These developments highlight a multi-faceted evolution of tokenization infrastructure, emphasizing that a token's technical record must be legally linked to underlying rights, often requiring traditional market participants like custodians and transfer agents.