Kraken Parent Payward Introduces Proxy Voting Rights for Tokenized Equity Holders Through Broadridge Partnership

Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, is partnering with fintech giant Broadridge Financial Solutions to introduce proxy voting rights for eligible holders of its xStocks tokenized equities. Previously, xStocks investors had no voting rights. The integration utilizes Broadridge's infrastructure and Web3 authentication to collect and submit voting preferences, bridging the gap between digital assets and traditional corporate governance. The xStocks platform has processed over $35 billion in volume across 500+ securities, though it remains restricted for U.S. and UK residents.

xStocks proxy voting rights

• ▪As of July 22, 2026, the xStocks platform had processed over $35 billion in cumulative transaction volume across more than 500 tokenized securities.
• ▪Prior to this initiative, xStocks holders had no voting rights connected to the underlying shares represented by the tokens.
• ▪Payward is introducing proxy voting rights for eligible holders of its xStocks tokenized equities, allowing them to submit voting preferences on corporate governance matters.

Broadridge partnership infrastructure

• ▪Eligible xStocks investors will verify their identity using Web3 authentication before accessing Broadridge's ProxyVote.com portal to view corporate materials and cast votes.
• ▪Payward is partnering with Broadridge Financial Solutions to integrate Broadridge's established proxy voting and shareholder communications infrastructure with the xStocks platform.

Tokenized equity governance legitimacy

• ▪The integration of proxy voting addresses criticisms that tokenized equities act merely as synthetic wrappers or contracts for difference without true corporate ownership rights.
• ▪Major traditional financial institutions, including JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs, are also exploring onchain securities and tokenized asset infrastructure.

MiCA regulatory compliance

• ▪The xStocks tokenized equities, which are issued by Backed, are currently unavailable to residents or persons in the United States and the United Kingdom.
• ▪Payward is structuring its xStocks platform to align with the European Union's impending Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation to ensure compliance as it expands.

Global expansion strategy

• ▪Payward plans to expand its xStocks offering to additional international markets, including the United Kingdom, Europe, and South Korea.
• ▪Payward partnered with fintech infrastructure provider GTN to expand xStocks to include Hong Kong Stock Exchange securities.

Fractional voting technical challenges

• ▪Implementing corporate voting for xStocks requires resolving the mathematical aggregation of fractional shares into whole votes, as well as managing operational latency between 24/7 crypto markets and rigid corporate record dates.
• ▪The Broadridge system does not make token holders direct registered owners of the underlying shares, but instead provides a route to collect and transmit their proxy preferences.