Full Breakdown
Janus Henderson and Centrifuge Launch JQQQ, a Nasdaq-100 Fund on the Stellar Blockchain
By Drooid · · How we work
In this breakdown
01
Core Event: Tokenized Nasdaq-100 Fund Goes Live on Stellar
On October 27, Janus Henderson partnered with Centrifuge to issue JQQQ, a blockchain-native fund that tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index. Shares are minted on Stellar under a licensing agreement with Nasdaq and are offered exclusively to eligible professional investors outside the United States.
02
Background & Context
Nasdaq expanded licensing of its Nasdaq-100 Index in April, allowing managers such as BlackRock and State Street to issue index-linked products. Janus Henderson, a London-based manager with roughly $500 billion AUM, used this access to create the first issuer-sponsored, blockchain-native fund that directly replicates the index rather than wrapping an existing ETF.
Centrifuge provides the on-chain issuance and operational infrastructure; the fund is legally structured as a segregated portfolio of Anemoy Capital SPC Limited, a BVI investment company. Janus Henderson Investors US LLC acts as sub-investment manager.
Visual evidence
Images from the story
03
Data & Statistics
- Minimum subscription: $100,000 (Wall Street Journal).
- Janus Henderson’s on-chain strategies now exceed $1 billion in assets.
- Stellar’s real-world asset market was reported at $3.8 billion (CoinGecko) and $4 billion (RWA.xyz) in 2026.
04
Official Statements & Responses
- Sean Wasserman, head of index product management at Nasdaq, noted growing demand for “exposure to established, transparent benchmarks.”
- Anil Sood, chief strategy and growth officer at Centrifuge, said tokenization gains power when assets can serve as building blocks for on-chain financial systems.
05
Verbatim Quotes
- “As investors explore new ways to access markets through digital infrastructure, demand continues to grow for exposure to established, transparent benchmarks,” — Sean Wasserman, Nasdaq
- “Tokenization becomes much more powerful when the assets investors want to own can also become building blocks for an onchain financial system,” — Anil Sood, Centrifuge
06
Why It Matters / Impact
JQQQ shifts from earlier “stock-token” models to an issuer-sponsored structure with regulatory backing and an official Nasdaq license. Holders receive indirect exposure to the Nasdaq-100 but lack direct shareholder rights. The segregated-portfolio design aligns with institutional preferences, potentially broadening acceptance of tokenized assets among traditional finance participants.
The launch also highlights Stellar’s role as a permissionless layer-1 blockchain for institutional tokenization, complementing networks that host tokenized Treasuries, credit products, and private-equity assets.
07
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Sources differ on the total value of tokenized real-world assets on Stellar in 2026: CoinGecko cites $3.8 billion, while RWA.xyz reports $4 billion. No definitive data exist on the expected AUM for JQQQ after launch.
08
What’s Next
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) plans to connect its tokenization service to Stellar, with rollout anticipated in the first half of 2027. This could enable tokenized U.S. Treasuries, major index ETFs, and Russell 1000 stocks to be issued on the same network that now hosts JQQQ.
*Key Figures*
- Sean Wasserman – Head of Index Product Management, Nasdaq.
- Anil Sood – Chief Strategy and Growth Officer, Centrifuge.
- Nick Cherney – Head of Innovation, Janus Henderson.