Kraken Launches Commission-Free Stock and ETF Trading, Expands Crypto Ecosystem into Traditional Finance

Exchange Pushes Toward Tokenized Multi-Asset Future with U.S. Rollout and Global Plans

Kraken has officially stepped beyond its crypto roots, launching commission-free trading for over 11,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs through its newly unveiled platform, Kraken Securities. The move marks the company’s first formal expansion into traditional finance and is backed by regulatory clearance from FINRA, allowing it to operate as a licensed securities broker in the United States. With this development, Kraken now offers integrated access to cryptocurrencies, equities, ETFs, stablecoins, and fiat under one seamless trading interface, giving users the ability to move between asset classes without leaving its ecosystem.

The rollout began on April 14, 2025, in ten U.S. jurisdictions, including New Jersey, Connecticut, and Wyoming, with plans for rapid expansion across the remaining states and international markets like the UK, Europe, and Australia. By enabling retail investors to trade stocks and ETFs commission-free, the platform directly targets market share from legacy fintechs such as Robinhood. Features like fractional share investing, instant reinvestment of proceeds across asset classes, and 24/7 access differentiate Kraken’s offering by tapping into the always-on nature of crypto infrastructure and appealing to a new generation of cross-asset traders.

Co-CEO Arjun Sethi emphasized the platform’s strategic vision, calling the move a natural extension of the evolution already underway in financial markets. “Crypto isn’t just evolving, it’s becoming the backbone for trading across asset classes, such as equities, commodities, and currencies,” Sethi said. “Expanding into equities paves the way for the tokenization of assets. The future of trading is borderless, always on, and built on crypto rails — and Kraken will continue to lead this shift.” The exchange’s direction aligns with broader industry trends around tokenized securities and programmable compliance, with ambitions of enabling 24/7 global markets and fractionalized ownership of traditional financial products.

The platform’s regulatory positioning reflects its long-term commitment to bridging crypto and traditional finance. Kraken is actively seeking a full broker-dealer license from FINRA to deepen its foothold in U.S. markets. Meanwhile, the company secured Electronic Money Institution status from the UK’s financial regulator on March 11, 2025, giving it the ability to expand its equity trading services across Europe and other regulated jurisdictions. These milestones lay the foundation for Kraken’s multi-asset expansion strategy while reinforcing its legal footing amid heightened regulatory scrutiny facing the broader crypto sector.

Industry veterans view Kraken’s move as a significant catalyst for the convergence of traditional and digital finance. Though some skeptics have raised concerns about combining volatile crypto assets with traditional financial instruments, the broader financial technology community sees it as an inevitable step forward. Analysts point to similarities with earlier initiatives by Robinhood and FTX US, both of which aimed to dissolve the wall between crypto and equities. Kraken’s approach—rooted in compliance, infrastructure integration, and round-the-clock access—may prove more durable in pushing the industry toward fully tokenized, always-available markets.

This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.