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Backpack, the crypto exchange and neobrokerage built on Solana, now allows users to post real shares of Micron Technology (MU) and SanDisk (SNDK) as collateral within its unified portfolio margin system. The move turns equity holdings into working capital for leveraged trading across stocks, crypto, and perpetual futures, all without shuttling funds between separate accounts.
Until now, equities held on Backpack were essentially inert. You could buy them, sell them, watch them go up or down. But they couldn’t do anything else. That changes with this update, which treats stock positions more like the multi-purpose assets they are on traditional prime brokerage desks.
What the update actually does
The core idea is straightforward: if you own Micron or SanDisk shares on Backpack, those positions now count toward your margin balance. That margin balance supports trading across the platform’s full product suite, including crypto spot, perpetual futures, and other equities.
Alongside the collateral update, Backpack rolled out perpetual futures contracts for MU, SNDK, SPY, and QQQ. Perpetual futures are a crypto-native instrument: they work like traditional futures but never expire, with funding rates keeping prices tethered to spot.
All of this runs around the clock. Backpack launched 24/7 trading for real US shares on July 10, 2026, removing the constraint of market hours that still governs most traditional brokerages.
The tokenization layer underneath
In June and July 2026, the platform launched tokenized versions of Micron and SanDisk on Solana. Each token is backed 1:1 by real shares, creating an on-chain representation that can trade and settle within DeFi protocols while maintaining a direct link to the underlying equity.
Those tokenized shares and the real shares now coexist on the same platform, serving different but complementary roles. The tokenized versions offer DeFi composability and liquidity outside traditional settlement windows. The real shares, with this update, offer collateral weight in a regulated margin system.
Why this matters beyond Backpack
Cross-margining between asset classes is standard practice at firms like Goldman Sachs or JP Morgan, where a client’s bond portfolio might back equity derivatives exposure. Traditional brokerages like Interactive Brokers and Robinhood offer portfolio margin on equities, but they don’t touch crypto derivatives in the same account. Crypto exchanges like Binance and Bybit offer sophisticated margin on digital assets, but they don’t hold real stock positions. Backpack is positioning itself in the gap between those two worlds.
Backpack acquired the FTX EU entity in 2024 and has been building out its regulatory footprint, but operating a unified margin system across asset classes means satisfying multiple regulatory frameworks at once.
Backpack has signaled that Micron and SanDisk are just the beginning, with plans to expand the list of equities eligible for collateral use.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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