Stocks on crypto exchanges

More and more crypto exchanges offer shares. What you actually buy differs per platform — and the difference is bigger than the marketing suggests.

With a real share you are a part-owner: you have voting rights, you receive dividends, and if the platform fails your position sits with a custodian in your name. With a wrapper token you buy a token that tracks the price, issued by a third party and backed by shares they hold. With a CFD you buy no share at all but a contract with the platform as your counterparty. All three sit under a button marked “Stocks”.

This section sets out, per provider, which of the three it is, who holds the share, under whose supervision, and what happens to your position if things go wrong. Plus the practical side: when you can trade, in which currency, what it costs, and whether you need to file a W-8BEN.

For European customers there is one more layer: offering shares requires MiFID II, and few crypto exchanges hold it. Where a product is not available in the EU, it says so.