Crypto exchange Kraken said on Thursday it was the first platform to list QCAD, a Canadian-dollar stablecoin issued by QCAD Digital Trust, and that it now enables holders to earn rewards.
The move comes after Canada’s Bill C-15 received Royal Assent on March 26, enacting the Stablecoin Act and formally treating stablecoins as payment infrastructure. The Bank of Canada will supervise non-financial institution issuers under the new framework, with responsibilities including registration, compliance oversight, and enforcement.
QCAD predates the federal law. The stablecoin received its final prospectus receipt from Canadian securities regulators in November 2025 under the existing Value-Referenced Crypto Asset framework. That prospectus states holders “are not entitled to receive distributions or any form of passive income on their QCAD Tokens.”
Kraken’s rewards offering highlights a tension in the new law. The Act prohibits issuers from paying interest or yield “directly or indirectly,” language Kraken argues is broad enough to capture activity-based rewards paid by platforms rather than issuers.
In its blog post, Kraken said implementing regulations should clarify that exchange-level rewards fall outside the prohibition’s scope, and called for a federal paramountcy provision to resolve overlap between the new federal framework and existing provincial securities regimes.
