Nasdaq invested $100 million in Payward as part of its push toward tokenized stock products with round-the-clock trading. Nasdaq has invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, as part of the New York electronic bourse’s expansion into tokenized assets. Nasdaq’s venture arm made a $100 million investment in Payward, the exchange operator revealed in a Thursday announcement. As part of the deal, Kraken will offer tokenized versions of Nasdaq-listed stocks on its own platform. The investment builds on Nasdaq’s partnership with Payward announced in March. The investment valued Kraken’s parent company at $21 billion, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on Thursday. Cointelegraph approached Nasdaq for comment on the matter but did not receive a reply before publishing time. Read more
The deal will bring SoFiUSD to Kraken, connect Payward to SoFi’s 24/7 dollar settlement network and give SoFi access to digital asset liquidity through Kraken Prime. Kraken parent Payward has partnered with SoFi in a deal that will bring SoFiUSD to Kraken and connect the crypto platform to SoFi’s 24/7 dollar settlement network. Under the partnership, SoFi will use Kraken Prime as an additional source of digital asset liquidity, while Payward will join the SoFi Exchange Network (SEN) and gain access to SoFi’s business banking services. The companies said qualified custody services could be added as the partnership expands, while Kraken’s institutional and business clients will gain access to SEN for round-the-clock US dollar settlement. Read more
The London bourse operator is seeking to offer 24/5 exposure to UK-based tokenized equities, as more TradFi institutions explore tokenized equities offerings. The London Stock Exchange (LSE) and cryptocurrency exchange Kraken are reportedly launching tokenized stock trading on the stock market operator’s new night-time trading venue. The LSE has partnered with Kraken’s parent company, Payward, to launch access to tokenized stocks tracking the value of leading UK equity products starting in 2027, Payward’s chief commercial officer, Mark Greenberg, told the Financial Times according to a Tuesday report. The tokenized stocks will be listed on LSE’s new night-time trading venue, LSE 24, that will offer 24/5 trading, operating from Mondays to Fridays, the company announced on July 21. Read more
The multi-asset card lets US customers spend crypto and fiat and earn cashback as Kraken’s parent company expands across financial services. Kraken’s payment app, Krak, has launched a multi-asset debit card in the US, allowing customers to spend crypto and fiat while earning up to 2% cashback in dollars or Bitcoin (BTC). The card supports more than 600 currencies and assets, with holdings converted into US dollars at point of sale. A single purchase can draw from multiple balances, with users setting the order in which assets are spent, according to an announcement Tuesday. The card is issued by Lead Bank on Visa’s network and powered by Stripe Issuing, with physical and virtual versions available to eligible US customers. The company said cashback rates depend on average assets held across Krak, Kraken and Kraken Pro. Read more
Eligible EEA users can trade conventional US shares alongside more than 700 tokenized xStocks through Kraken’s European entity. Kraken has launched trading in more than 7,000 US-listed stocks for customers in the European Economic Area (EEA), expanding its traditional finance offering alongside cryptocurrencies and tokenized equities. The crypto exchange said Tuesday that eligible EEA customers can trade US stocks through Kraken Pro and its mobile app under the company’s Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II authorization. The shares are available alongside more than 600 crypto assets and over 700 xStocks, which are tokenized versions of publicly listed equities. Read more
Payward grew revenue despite weaker crypto spot activity, as funded accounts jumped 42% and a growing share of revenue came from outside transaction-based activity. Kraken parent Payward reported $508 million in adjusted revenue for the second quarter, up 17% year over year despite a decline in crypto spot trading and overall transaction volume. According to Friday’s earnings report, total transaction volume fell 13% year over year to $310 billion, while funded accounts increased 42% to 6.6 million. Payward remained adjusted EBITDA positive at $23 million. Asset-based and other revenue accounted for 60% of total revenue, up from 55% a year earlier, as the company generated a growing share of its revenue outside transaction-based activity. Read more
Kraken’s funded trading program adds round-the-clock exposure to the US equity benchmark as it builds out its multi-asset offering. US-based crypto exchange Kraken has added an S&P 500 perpetual product to its proprietary trading program, giving funded traders round-the-clock exposure to the US equity benchmark. According to a company blog post on Wednesday, the product is structured as a perpetual priced off an index oracle tracking the S&P 500, rather than a standardized futures contract, meaning it has no expiration date or rollover requirement. The S&P 500 joins the Nasdaq 100 as the second traditional market available through Kraken Prop, with the company planning to add commodities as part of a broader multi-asset rollout. Traders can access the S&P 500 market across Kraken Prop’s evaluation and funded accounts with up to 5x leverage and a maximum notional exposure of $1 million, according to the company. Read more
The five-year bug escaped detection because auditors verified that the intended random number generator existed, but not that it was being called. Coldcard’s five-year seed-generation flaw has exposed a broader weakness in how hardware wallets are independently tested, according to Kraken chief security officer Nick Percoco. In an X post on Sunday, Percoco said the incident should be a “wake-up call” for hardware-wallet makers, calling for independent testing to verify that the approved source of randomness is the one actually used by production firmware. “Consumers are asked to trust a manufacturer’s implementation of the single most critical function in the system, with no independent verification that the approved entropy path is the one actually executing,” said Percoco. Read more
Eligible US users can request IPO allocations, while customers in more than 110 countries gain access to tokenized Jersey Mike’s shares backed 1:1 by the underlying stock. Crypto exchange Kraken is offering retail investors access to the planned Jersey Mike’s initial public offering, allowing eligible US customers to request allocations of the sandwich chain’s shares and users in more than 110 countries to request tokenized shares backed 1:1 by the underlying stock. Eligible US customers can submit interest in book-entry Jersey Mike’s shares at the IPO price, while global customers can request JMKEx, a tokenized version of the stock with the backing shares held in regulated custody. Allocations are determined by the IPO underwriter and are not guaranteed. JMKEx will begin trading 24 hours a day, five days a week on Kraken and participating xStocks Alliance platforms once the IPO closes, while the underlying Jersey Mike’s shares will trade during regular US market hours. Read more
Eligible US users can request IPO allocations, while customers in more than 110 countries gain access to tokenized Jersey Mike’s shares backed 1:1 by the underlying stock. Crypto exchange Kraken is offering retail investors access to the planned Jersey Mike’s initial public offering, allowing eligible US customers to request allocations of the sandwich chain’s shares and users in more than 110 countries to request tokenized shares backed 1:1 by the underlying stock. Eligible US customers can submit interest in book-entry Jersey Mike’s shares at the IPO price, while global customers can request JMKEx, a tokenized version of the stock with the backing shares held in regulated custody. Allocations are determined by the IPO underwriter and are not guaranteed. JMKEx will begin trading 24 hours a day, five days a week on Kraken and participating xStocks Alliance platforms once the IPO closes, while the underlying Jersey Mike’s shares will trade during regular US market hours. Read more
The deal brings wallet technology to Payward’s enterprise platform, potentially reducing the number of infrastructure providers businesses need to integrate with. Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has agreed to acquire the wallet-as-a-service business of Magic Labs, expanding its enterprise infrastructure offering as demand for onchain financial services continues to grow. Payward said Monday the acquisition will allow it to integrate Magic Labs’ non-custodial wallet technology into Payward Services, its business-to-business platform for crypto trading, custody, tokenized assets and fiat on- and off-ramps. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The addition of embedded wallets allows businesses to offer self-custodied wallets directly within their applications instead of relying on third-party wallet providers, giving business clients a broader suite of blockchain infrastructure through a single integration. Read more
The redesigned app will use AI to recommend trades and tailor investing tools around users' financial goals as Kraken expands into broader financial services. Crypto exchange Kraken is adding AI-powered financial tools to its mobile app as exchanges increasingly compete to offer personalized investing tools beyond basic trading features. According to a company announcement, users will begin by setting financial goals and preferences, allowing the app to tailor its interface and recommendations around those objectives rather than requiring customers to navigate complex trading tools. The company said the redesigned platform will help users pursue goals such as buying a home, saving for retirement or building an emergency fund. Kraken said its "financial intelligence" continuously monitors markets, identifies investment opportunities and recommends trades, but does not execute transactions autonomously. Every recommendation requires the user's approval before a trade is placed, with the company positioning the ...
US prosecutors charged Rossen Iossifov over the alleged laundering of $290,000 in forfeited crypto from a Kraken account. United States prosecutors have charged a man serving a federal prison sentence over the alleged removal and laundering of about $290,000 in crypto assets held in a Kraken account subject to a forfeiture order. The Department of Justice said on Thursday that Rossen Iossifov, a Bulgarian national, conspired in January 2024 to withdraw and transfer crypto that a federal court had ordered forfeited following his 2021 conviction. Prosecutors allege that the assets were moved through illicit mixing services and crypto exchanges before the US could take possession. The case shows how attempts to move crypto after a forfeiture order can trigger fresh criminal charges, even after the underlying conviction. Read more