Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has reached an agreement to acquire Bitnomial, a digital asset derivatives platform, in a cash-and-stock deal valued at up to $550 million. This transaction values the company at $20 billion, as stated in a press release shared exclusively with CoinDesk. Bitnomial, founded over a decade ago, is notable for being the first crypto-native platform to obtain all three necessary licenses to operate a full-stack derivatives business in the US.
These licenses include approvals to operate a designated contract market, a derivatives clearing organization, and a futures commission merchant. By acquiring Bitnomial, Payward effectively bypasses years of regulatory development, significantly advancing its US footprint expansion. Kraken, while trailing behind platforms like OKX, Bybit, and Coinbase in spot trading volumes, maintains a substantial presence in the crypto derivatives market. Kraken is a US-based cryptocurrency exchange that enables users to buy, sell, and trade digital assets such as bitcoin and ether using either fiat or crypto.
The platform has diversified its services to include derivatives, staking, and custody, positioning itself as a comprehensive trading platform beyond a basic retail application. According to Payward Co-CEO Arjun Sethi, the structure of a market is defined by its clearing infrastructure rather than its front end. He highlighted Bitnomial's crypto-native settlement, collateral, and 24/7 trading capabilities as central to their strategy. The crypto sector has seen an uptick in deal activity following a prolonged downturn, as companies seek to consolidate capabilities and reinforce infrastructure in the wake of market volatility and regulatory scrutiny.
Larger, better-capitalized players are increasingly focusing on strategic acquisitions that address gaps in areas such as custody, derivatives, or compliance, rather than pursuing growth at any cost. Simultaneously, depressed valuations have created opportunities for buyers, while smaller startups facing funding constraints are more open to acquisition, setting the stage for a more pragmatic phase of industry consolidation.
Kraken has been scaling up in anticipation of its planned initial public offering (IPO). Payward confidentially submitted a draft S-1 to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on November 19 of the previous year. However, according to recent reports, the firm has put its IPO plans on hold due to challenging market conditions. Sources indicate that the company is still considering an initial public offering but likely not until market conditions improve.
In recent years, Kraken has pursued a targeted yet increasingly strategic M&A strategy aimed at expanding beyond pure crypto trading into multi-asset and derivatives infrastructure. One of its most significant transactions was the $1.5 billion acquisition of NinjaTrader in 2025, a US-based retail futures platform and CFTC-registered FCM. This marked the largest-ever deal between traditional finance and crypto, giving Kraken a direct foothold in US derivatives markets and a large base of futures traders. Prior to this, Kraken executed smaller acquisitions such as BCM in 2023 and other platform or exchange purchases, including the later acquisition of Small Exchange, aimed at building out its derivatives and institutional capabilities.
Overall, Kraken's deal activity signals a clear strategy of using M&A to acquire regulatory licenses, trading infrastructure, and user bases that help it evolve into a broader, institutional-grade, multi-asset trading platform spanning both crypto and traditional markets. The combined platform will integrate Bitnomial's regulated infrastructure with Payward's global distribution and liquidity across brands including Kraken and NinjaTrader. Initial offerings are expected to include spot margin, perpetual futures, and options for US clients under the oversight of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Payward has been building out its derivatives business globally, acquiring a UK crypto futures platform in 2019 and launching an EU offering in 2025.
With Bitnomial, it now adds a fully regulated US stack. The deal also expands Payward Services, the firm's B2B infrastructure arm, allowing banks, fintechs, and brokerages to access regulated US derivatives through a single API integration. The transaction, covering 100% of Bitnomial's equity, is expected to close in the first half of 2026, pending customary conditions and regulatory filings. "We are not acquiring a company.
We are adding the infrastructure layer that makes the next generation of US derivatives possible," Sethi said in emailed comments.