Kraken Adds DeFi Yield to Tokenized Stocks and ETFs

Kraken has expanded its tokenized-asset push by launching “xStocks” onchain yield vaults for select tokenized equities and ETFs. The service is designed to let eligible clients lend those tokenized holdings through decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols in order to generate yield, with returns paid in the deposited assets. In a Monday announcement, Kraken said the vaults currently support tokenized versions of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPYx), Invesco QQQ ETF (QQQx), and Nvidia (NVDAx). Clients deposit xStocks into the vaults, earn yield generated from onchain lending, and then submit withdrawal requests that Kraken processes within three days. Key takeaways Kraken’s new xStocks vaults generate yield by lending tokenized stocks and ETFs through DeFi markets. Yield is paid in the deposited xStocks, and withdrawals are handled within three days. The vaults build on the same infrastructure as Kraken DeFi Earn, which reported more than $800 million in deposits since its January launch. Supported tokenized products include SPYx, QQQx, and NVDAx, but the service excludes several major jurisdictions including the U.S. and U.K. Veda powers the vaults, while Sentora designs and manages the lending strategies and sets exposure limits. How Kraken’s xStocks vaults are structured Kraken’s announcement frames xStocks as an “onchain yield vault” for tokenized equities and ETFs—meaning the underlying assets exist in tokenized form on public infrastructure, and the vault seeks to put those tokens to work via DeFi lending. The company said yield is produced by lending the deposited xStocks through onchain markets. Instead of distributing yield as a separate token, Kraken pays it back to clients in the deposited xStocks themselves. That design choice matters for investors who want their position to remain denominated in the tokenized equity/ETF wrapper rather than receiving interest in a different asset class. Operationally, Kraken noted that withdrawal requests are processed within three days. For traders and yield-focused users, the speed and predictability of exits are often just as important as the yield rate itself—particularly when liquidity conditions in DeFi lending markets can change. Built on Kraken DeFi Earn, with Veda and Sentora in the mix Kraken said the xStocks vaults use the same infrastructure as Kraken DeFi Earn, a service that launched in January. The company reported that DeFi Earn has since attracted more than $800 million in deposits, underscoring that Kraken is treating DeFi yield distribution as a core capability rather than a niche experiment. For the xStocks vaults specifically, Kraken said the offering is powered by Veda. Sentora, according to the announcement, is responsible for designing and managing the lending strategies used to generate yield. Kraken also described how risk controls are handled inside those strategies.