Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, will soon allow retail investors outside traditional brokerage channels to participate in US listed initial public offerings through tokenized equity allocations at the IPO price.
The company said its xStocks framework will let eligible customers of Kraken and select xStocks Alliance members submit interest in upcoming US listed IPOs before a company goes public. If allocations are approved, users would receive tokenized shares at the offering price on listing day through the exchange they already use.
The product targets a part of capital markets that has historically favored institutional investors, private banking clients, and platforms with direct underwriter relationships. Retail investors often gain access only after shares begin trading publicly, when prices may already have moved above the IPO level.
Under the process, partner exchanges will open an indication of interest window in the weeks before a listing. Customers can submit non binding offers within the company’s indicated price range, while Payward Services aggregates demand and works with an underwriting syndicate on behalf of xStocks Alliance partners.
On listing day, finalized IPO allocations will be tokenized and distributed to eligible customers. Each tokenized equity will be backed 1:1 by the underlying share, which will be held in custody by a regulated entity.
