Kraken has introduced onchain xStocks vaults that let eligible clients earn yield on tokenized versions of major US equity products by lending them into decentralized finance markets. The initial lineup includes tokenized shares of Nvidia and tokenized ETF products tied to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 through SPYx, QQQx and NVDAx. Returns are paid in the same xStocks users deposit, and withdrawal requests are processed within three days. Kraken said the product runs on the same infrastructure as Kraken DeFi Earn, which the company says has gathered more than $800 million in deposits since its January launch. The vaults are powered by Veda, while Sentora designs and manages lending strategies and oversees exposure limits, collateral, liquidity and oracle conditions. Assets are lent through DeFi venues including Kamino on Solana. The rollout is available to eligible clients in the European Economic Area and certain other markets, but not in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia or the United Arab Emirates. The launch comes as tokenized equities continue to expand, with RWA.xyz data showing the distributed value of tokenized stocks and ETFs rising to about $2.84 billion from roughly $540 million a year earlier.

The S&P 500’s break above its previous high has shifted attention to the Nasdaq 100, which has yet to match that move. Bloomberg macro strategist Simon White said the latest surge in the S&P 500 bears the hallmarks of a short-covering rally, with stop-losses on bearish positions near prior highs getting triggered as the index climbed. The benchmark rose 1.5% on Monday and another 1.8% the next trading day, while Goldman Sachs’ most-shorted basket gained 13% over the past four sessions, a move cited as supporting that view. White argued the Nasdaq 100 may still have more room for a similar squeeze. Short interest in the Invesco QQQ ETF remains elevated in the latest data from about 10 to 14 days ago, while comparable ratios for S&P 500 and Russell 2000 ETFs have already declined. He also said the Nasdaq’s short-covering intensity was milder than the S&P 500’s in the latest session, suggesting a larger unwind may not have happened yet. He pointed to software stocks as one area to watch, saying short interest there has risen as coding agents became a thematic trade. Even so, White warned that inflation and real-rate risks remain in place, leaving open the possibility that the current advance could turn into a bull trap.

Trading in tokenized stocks and ETFs surged 288% in July to a record $11.3 billion, according to CoinDesk Data, with Binance’s bStocks ecosystem accounting for most of the activity. Binance alone posted $9.41 billion in volume, or 83.3% of the total. The biggest driver was QQQB, a bStocks token tied to the Invesco QQQ ETF, which generated $9.27 billion in trading volume and made up about 82% of all tokenized stock trading for the month. The report said QQQB’s sharp rise was mainly supported by Binance’s zero maker fee policy in August and a VIP volume multiplier program launched on July 23. Excluding QQQB, July volume came to about $2.03 billion, roughly 30% below the market’s expected June total of $2.91 billion. Elsewhere, xStocks volume fell from $1.55 billion to $335 million, while Ondo recorded $792 million and Backpack posted $479 million.

Bitcoin slipped to $69,917, pushing the Fear and Greed Index to 11. Crypto assets and metals fell while U.S. equities held firm. MSTR dropped 5%, AI miners were mixed.

Gabor Gurbacs, a Tether adviser, says the crypto industry's obsession with hype and speculative narratives is preventing Bitcoin from reaching record highs. Meanwhile, on-chain data shows heavy selling pressure from early holders.

Abu Dhabi regulators have approved Ondo’s tokenized stocks and ETFs for trading on Binance’s regulated venue, marking ADGM’s first approval of tokenized securities under its framework.

Coinbase introduces perpetual stock futures for eligible non-US traders, featuring Magnificent 7 stocks, SPY/QQQ ETFs, settled in USDC, with leverage up to 10x on single stocks and 20x on ETFs.

Ondo Finance used its summit to announce Perps, Global Listing, MetaMask access, a confidential SEC filing, and EU approval for tokenized stocks and ETFs across 30 markets.