Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has agreed to purchase digital asset derivatives platform Bitnomial for up to $550 million in a cash-and-stock deal, valuing the company at $20 billion. This acquisition, as announced in a press release shared with CoinDesk, marks a significant step in Payward's expansion into the US market.
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, including approvals for a designated contract market, a derivatives clearing organization, and a futures commission merchant. This acquisition effectively bypasses years of regulatory development for Payward, significantly enhancing its US footprint.
While Kraken may trail behind platforms like OKX, Bybit, and Coinbase in terms of spot trading volumes, it remains a major contender in the crypto derivatives market. Kraken, a US-based cryptocurrency exchange, allows users to buy, sell, and trade digital assets such as bitcoin and ether using either fiat or crypto. The platform has expanded 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 acquisition of Bitnomial is strategic, highlighting the importance of clearing infrastructure in determining market shape, and noting Bitnomial's crypto-native settlement, collateral, and 24/7 trading capabilities as core to their strategy. The deal activity in the crypto sector has started to increase following a prolonged downturn, with firms seeking to consolidate capabilities and reinforce infrastructure after years of market volatility and regulatory scrutiny.
Larger, well-capitalized players are targeting acquisitions that fill strategic gaps such as custody, derivatives, or compliance, rather than pursuing growth at any cost. At the same time, depressed valuations have created opportunities for buyers, while smaller startups facing funding constraints are more open to being acquired, setting the stage for a more pragmatic phase of industry consolidation. Kraken has been scaling up ahead of its planned initial public offering (IPO), with Payward having confidentially submitted a draft S-1 to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on November 19 last year.
However, according to recent reports, the firm has put its IPO plans on hold due to challenging market conditions, although it is still considering an initial public offering once 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, marking the largest-ever deal between traditional finance and crypto and giving Kraken a direct foothold in US derivatives markets and a large base of futures traders. Prior to that, 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 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 Commodity Futures Trading Commission oversight. 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, which covers 100% of Bitnomial's equity, is expected to close in the first half of 2026, pending customary conditions and regulatory filings. According to Sethi, 'We are not acquiring a company.
We are adding the infrastructure layer that makes the next generation of US derivatives possible.'