Africa’s largest crypto exchange introduces tokenized US equities on its platform

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VALR, Africa’s top crypto exchange by volume, has rolled out xStocks, becoming the first platform in the region to provide tokenized exposure to US-listed equities. With this new offering, VALR’s users can now track major names, such as Tesla, NVIDIA, Robinhood, Circle, and Coinbase.

The xStocks tokens, launched by Backed in May 2025, represent 1:1-backed tokenized versions of US-listed equities and ETFs, though they don’t include ownership rights, voting rights, or other shareholder privileges.

Users can trade these tokens on VALR’s Spot market against TetherUSD (USDT), other crypto assets including Bitcoin and Ethereum, or the South African rand.

Discussing the new feature, VALR CEO Farzam Ehsani said the launch of xStocks is a big step toward democratizing finance in South Africa and beyond. VALR wants to lead in making global financial assets more accessible through crypto, while enhancing its brand as an innovator in the space.

“By blending crypto and traditional finance, we are forging a financial system that brings down barriers and serves many more with unprecedented ease. This initiative not only strengthens VALR’s global profile but also reaffirms our commitment to bringing innovation and progress to our phenomenal community of VALR users,” Ehsani stated.

According to David Henderson, Head of Growth at Backed, the move is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to bring tokenized equities to users worldwide.

“We have seen incredible adoption of these assets, and now users from Africa will be able to access them on VALR, participating in tokenised capital markets,” he added.

VALR, founded in 2018, serves over 1,400 corporate and institutional clients and more than 1.5 million users worldwide. The exchange has secured $55 million in equity funding from investors including Pantera Capital, Coinbase Ventures, GSR, and F-Prime, affiliated with Fidelity Investments.

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