TL;DR
- Kraken Institutional has partnered with Centrifuge to bring real-world assets (RWAs) into qualified custody, starting with JAAA.
- JAAA is Janus Henderson’s flagship AAA CLO strategy, an investment-grade, yield-bearing product now available in tokenized form via Centrifuge.
- Institutions can hold, earn on, and deploy RWAs as active collateral within a single custody relationship, using them to borrow, trade via Kraken Prime, or deploy into a vault without moving assets or adding a counterparty.
- JAAA is the first RWA in Kraken Custody, with more tokenized assets to follow as the Kraken and Centrifuge partnership expands.
Real-world assets are now available in Kraken Custody. Institutions can hold tokenized TradFi assets, earn on them, and use them as active collateral, all within a single custody relationship. JAAA, Janus Henderson’s AAA CLO strategy tokenized via Centrifuge, is the first.
What this means in practice
Holding a tokenized asset in qualified custody is different from holding it in a traditional account. It doesn’t just sit there. It becomes productive.
A tokenized position held in Kraken Custody can be used as collateral for borrowing or trading via Kraken Prime, deployed into a vault to stack additional yield, or held to earn the underlying fund returns, all without moving assets out of custody or adding a new counterparty.
Settlement runs 24/7, no TradFi market hours, no T+2 lag.
Introducing JAAA
JAAA is Janus Henderson’s flagship AAA CLO strategy: investment-grade, yield-bearing, and now available in tokenized form as JAAA via Centrifuge.
Now institutions that hold JAAA can get utility on those assets. The tokenized version gives you the same exposure with added utility: onchain settlement, productive collateral, crypto-native integration.
“Janus Henderson is committed to being the premier provider of institutional quality tokenized products in DeFi,” said Nick Cherney, Head of Innovation at Janus Henderson. “That vision can only be realized alongside partners like Kraken and Centrifuge, who are similarly committed to continuing to innovate and lead as financial services increasingly move onchain.”
Why Centrifuge
Centrifuge is one of the first and largest platforms focused on tokenization. They are uniquely positioned to serve institutional clients with regulated fund services, while integrating across DeFi to make RWAs broadly compatible with the onchain ecosystem.
“Tokenization only matters if assets can be put to work,” said Bhaji Illuminati, CEO of Centrifuge. “Bringing JAAA into Kraken Custody means institutions can hold, earn, and deploy tokenized assets within a single framework. That’s a meaningful step toward making real-world assets part of everyday capital markets infrastructure.”
Why this matters for institutional treasury management
Institutions have traditionally had to choose between holding productive TradFi assets and participating in crypto markets. RWAs in qualified custody remove that tradeoff and are part of Kraken Institutional’s next generation of utility for institutional clients.
“Bringing traditional financial instruments into the Kraken ecosystem is a key priority as traditional and next-generation financial systems continue to converge,” said Gregory Barasia, Kraken Institutional’s Head of Asset Management. “We look forward to expanding the range of traditional products available to institutions, giving them more ways to increase access within a trusted, regulated framework.”
Institutional clients can now hold RWAs, earn the yield (and simultaneously borrow against them), trade via Prime, or deploy into a vault, without transferring assets or introducing a new counterparty relationship. One custody relationship covers all of it.
What comes next for RWAs
JAAA is the first RWA in Kraken QC, not the last. Our partnership with Centrifuge is an ongoing one. Institutions can expect more tokenized assets coming to custody as we expand the range of RWAs institutions can hold, earn on, and deploy. We’re building toward a future where institutions can access the full spectrum of TradFi and onchain assets within a single custody relationship.
Interested in learning more? Contact your RM or get in touch today.