payward

The tokenized asset data platform RootData has reached a deep data cooperation with Payward, the parent company of Kraken, to provide financing and token economics-related data support, assisting in data decision-making in scenarios such as information disclosure, tokenized stocks, institutional services, and business expansion.Payward is the underlying financial infrastructure for Kraken and its ever-growing family of businesses. Its operations cover four main pillars: trading, banking, asset management, and B2B services, with its brands showing growth in areas such as tokenized stocks, derivatives, stablecoin payments, and institutional settlement.Against the backdrop of the accelerating wave of RWA and tokenization, the data synergy between the two parties is expected to help Payward achieve more efficient business expansion while also strengthening RootData's position as a core data infrastructure in the industry. Currently, RootData's API has over 260 cumulative clients, covering well-known platforms such as Ethereum Foundation, Binance Wallet, OKX Wallet, CertiK, Coinglass, and Coinone.

The cryptocurrency trading platform Kraken's parent company Payward announced its intention to become the first CFTC-regulated deployer on the HIP-3* market of the on-chain perpetual contract infrastructure Hyperliquid. Payward will deploy a perpetual futures market for U.S. customers based on Hyperliquid as the infrastructure layer.Upon obtaining regulatory approval, Payward's designated contract market and derivatives clearing organization Bitnomial, which is regulated by the CFTC, will act as the HIP-3* deployer, responsible for creating, holding, and managing the relevant market, as well as completing contract clearing and settlement. If approved, Payward's CFTC-registered futures commission merchant NinjaTrader Clearing will take over customer accounts.Hyperliquid stated that HIP-3 will support optional deployer configurations for licensed markets in future network upgrades, with the new features collectively referred to as HIP-3*. At its core is an on-chain whitelist managed by the deployer or its sub-deployers, which is an incremental option for HIP-3, with the decision to enable it made by the deployer, while existing markets remain unchanged. The initial version has been launched on the test network, and the specifications are still preliminary and may be adjusted based on feedback. Hyperliquid stated that HIP-3* deployers are independently operated entities that use their on-chain infrastructure to operate their own markets and retain control and responsibility over the deployment.

The parent company of Kraken, Payward, has received preliminary approval from the Kazakhstan AFSA and plans to offer digital asset trading, investment trading, and custody services through Payward Kazakhstan at the Astana International Financial Centre. After obtaining the final license, local users will also have access to Kraken's global order book and major market liquidity.

According to Solid Intel, Kraken's parent company Payward has obtained full regulatory approval from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). Kraken plans to launch in the UAE and support deposits and withdrawals in UAE Dirhams.Previously, Payward received preliminary approval for a VARA brokerage and investment management license in May 2026.

According to CoinDesk, citing two individuals with direct knowledge, Kraken's parent company Payward is in talks with Wells Fargo to become its cryptocurrency liquidity provider. Under the potential arrangement, Wyoming-based Payward would supply liquidity for digital asset trading. The individuals requested anonymity as the matter is not yet public, negotiations are ongoing, and an agreement may not be reached. Both Payward and Wells Fargo declined to comment.The report states that cryptocurrency exchanges often serve as a gateway for banks and institutional investors to access digital asset liquidity, providing access to trading venues and assisting in order execution. Wells Fargo previously served as the exclusive capital markets advisor for Nasdaq, which agreed in September to invest $100 million in Payward and deepen collaboration in tokenized stocks and market surveillance. CoinDesk also reported that Payward was in talks last week with custodian bank BNY regarding financial infrastructure collaboration.

According to The Block, Kraken's parent company Payward has partnered with Singapore Gulf Bank to provide 24/7 settlement services for institutional digital asset clients.Payward stated that it has connected to the bank's real-time multi-currency clearing network SGB Net. Initially, this settlement service will offer USD transaction settlements to select clients, with plans to expand to more currencies in the future.

According to CoinDesk, informed sources revealed that the custody bank giant BNY is in talks with Payward, the parent company of the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, for a broad collaboration covering digital assets and financial market infrastructure. The potential agreement may involve areas such as crypto products, custody, wealth management, trading, payments, and infrastructure, with related services provided through Payward Services, which targets banks, exchanges, and asset management institutions.One source indicated that part of the proposed collaboration may be similar to the infrastructure component of the recent agreement Payward reached with Nasdaq. Negotiations are still ongoing, and there is no guarantee that an agreement will be reached; both Payward and BNY declined to comment. BNY, formerly known as Bank of New York Mellon, provides custody, asset services, clearing, and wealth management services to institutional clients and has been developing tokenized deposits to support near real-time on-chain settlements among institutional market participants.Reaching an agreement with BNY would further promote Payward's efforts to connect digital asset businesses with traditional financial institutions. Last month, Nasdaq Ventures agreed to invest $100 million in Payward at a valuation of $21 billion, expanding the collaboration between the two parties in tokenized stocks. Under the agreement, both parties will continue to develop the operational and commercial infrastructure for Nasdaq stock tokens, and Payward will also adopt Nasdaq's market surveillance technology in its cryptocurrency, stock, tokenized stock, futures, and options trading venues, with both parties expecting to launch Nasdaq stock tokens in the second quarter of 2027.

According to CoinDesk, Kraken's parent company Payward has invested billions of dollars over the past two years, expanding into futures and derivatives, tokenized stocks, and banking through acquisitions and self-built businesses, aiming to integrate trading, payments, asset management, and institutional services into a unified financial infrastructure.Payward's co-CEO Arjun Sethi stated that the company is not a holding company, but "a set of platforms, a balance sheet, a regulatory framework," with the core being to facilitate the flow of funds and assets between different businesses through "a single ledger."Payward has currently enhanced the U.S. futures and derivatives infrastructure through acquisitions such as NinjaTrader and Bitnomial, and plans to acquire a bank in Europe; its B2B infrastructure division Payward Services currently has at least 25 companies using its API, including Hyperliquid. In the second quarter of 2026, Payward's adjusted revenue was $508 million, a year-on-year increase of 17%.

Kraken's parent company Payward plans to offer on-chain perpetual futures to U.S. customers through the decentralized perpetual contract platform Hyperliquid. Bitnomial will deploy and clear the HIP-3 market, while NinjaTrader Clearing will host customer accounts.Payward stated that this will be the first registered U.S. exchange and clearinghouse to deploy a market on Hyperliquid.

According to Bloomberg, informed sources say that Nasdaq will invest $100 million in Payward, the parent company of the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, through its venture capital department to continue building infrastructure that supports stock tokenization trading.This investment brings Payward's valuation to $21 billion and further expands the partnership announced by both parties in March of this year.

According to two informed sources, Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has postponed its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) to as early as the second quarter of 2027. CoinDesk reported in March this year that the company had shelved its multi-billion dollar IPO plans due to a challenging market environment; this delay further extends the much-watched listing process.Payward confidentially submitted its S-1 registration statement draft to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in November 2025, shortly after the company completed an $800 million funding round at a $20 billion valuation, which included a $200 million investment from Citadel Securities. After Circle and Bullish successfully went public last year, the cryptocurrency industry originally expected a wave of listings in 2026, but weak coin prices and trading volumes, along with the lackluster market performance of some newly listed digital asset companies, dampened investor enthusiasm, leading companies like Grayscale, Consensys, and Ledger to also postpone their listing plans.During the IPO hiatus, Payward continued to expand beyond its core exchange business, venturing into traditional and crypto derivatives, tokenized stocks, and payment infrastructure through a series of acquisitions and product launches. The company's adjusted revenue for the second quarter was $508 million, a 17% year-over-year increase, with the number of funded accounts rising to 6.6 million and platform assets reaching $40 billion.

The parent company of Kraken, Payward, announced a partnership with the London Stock Exchange (LSE) to tokenize the stocks of the 100 largest companies listed on the LSE into xStocks, which are backed 1:1. The first London-listed xStocks are expected to be launched on Kraken and other platforms supporting the xStocks Alliance in the coming weeks, available to investors in over 110 countries, but not yet open to UK investors.Subject to regulatory approval, the LSE plans to list and support xStocks trading on its newly launched extended trading hours, LSE 24. LSE CEO Julia Hoggett stated that by collaborating with Payward and continuously working with the market infrastructure ecosystem, they are exploring how issuers and investors can benefit from new access methods while maintaining the standards that underpin the public market. In addition to tokenizing existing stocks, both parties will also explore the issuance of native equity tokens through LSE infrastructure, which have the same rights as traditional stocks and are fully interchangeable.Payward's tokenized stock framework was launched in June 2025 and acquired by Payward in December, having processed over $40 billion in total trading volume, covering more than 200,000 holders, with nearly $20 billion settled on-chain. According to RWA.xyz data, there are currently approximately $2.53 billion in existing tokenized stocks, with xStocks tokenizing about $606.6 million, making it the second-largest issuer after Ondo.

The London Stock Exchange (LSEG) and Payward, the parent company of the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, announced a partnership to bring stocks of the largest listed companies in the UK onto the blockchain. In the coming weeks, the stocks of the top 100 companies listed on the LSE will be available on Payward's xStocks tokenized stock framework. These xStocks are tokens that correspond one-to-one with the underlying stocks, allowing for 24/7 trading on centralized exchanges, self-custody wallets, and on-chain applications.This initiative continues the rapidly expanding framework of Payward. Over the past year, the cumulative trading volume of xStocks has exceeded $40 billion, with nearly $20 billion settled on-chain, and more than 200,000 product holders. Through the blockchain channel, UK-listed stocks will be able to reach investor groups in over 110 countries, although xStocks are currently not available to domestic UK investors.Subject to regulatory approval, the LSE plans to list and support xStocks trading on its newly launched 24-hour trading platform, LSE 24, and will gradually cover tokenized stocks and more asset classes in the US, EU, UK, and Hong Kong. Both parties also stated that they will explore stock tokens issued natively by the LSE, allowing LSE members to issue and service stocks directly on-chain, with the same full interchangeability and rights as traditional stocks. Payward Co-CEO Arjun Sethi stated that for years, people have assumed that crypto and traditional finance must collide and one side would lose, but that has never been the real story;

According to The Block, Kraken's parent company Payward's co-CEO Dave Ripley stated that the company is exploring becoming a "full-service bank" outside the United States to expand services such as payments, lending, yield, and custody.Payward is also building asset management capabilities and transforming its infrastructure into a series of services accessible to banks, brokerages, and fintech companies.

Payward (the parent company of Kraken) stated that in the coming weeks, it will use Claude Mythos 5 to scan for vulnerabilities in all Payward environments, and the findings will be directly incorporated into its existing security program.

According to Bloomberg, Kraken operator Payward disclosed that due to a slowdown in industry trading activity, the company's adjusted pre-tax profit for the second quarter of 2026 was $23 million, a 71% decrease from $79.7 million in the same period last year; during the same period, adjusted revenue increased by 17% year-on-year to $508 million.Payward stated that although revenue continues to grow, the overall trading volume in the cryptocurrency market is weak, putting pressure on profitability. Kraken has been continuously expanding its institutional business, derivatives trading, and on-chain services in recent years, but changes in the industry cycle still exert pressure on its core trading business.

Financial technology company Broadridge has partnered with Kraken's B2B infrastructure platform Payward Services to integrate its unified governance platform with the tokenized stock framework xStocks developed by the latter. This collaboration provides qualified holders of xStocks with shareholder communication and proxy voting support, allowing token holders to participate in corporate governance voting for the companies they invest in for the first time.According to the announcement, the main features include qualified holders logging into ProxyVote.com via Web3 identity verification, receiving proxy materials and shareholder communication information in a digital format, submitting proxy voting intentions for tokenized securities supported by xStocks, and obtaining a consistent governance experience between traditional securities and mainstream tokenized models. Additionally, this service is based on Broadridge's proxy voting infrastructure, offering institutional-level governance, reporting, and audit capabilities.

According to The Block, Magic Labs has agreed to sell its embedded wallet business to cryptocurrency exchange Kraken's parent company Payward as part of a broader company restructuring, with Magic Labs simultaneously rebranding to Newton Labs. This transaction is in the form of an asset sale, and after the deal is completed, Magic Labs and Payward will continue to operate independently, with wallet customers being taken over by Payward Services.Since its establishment in 2018, Magic Labs has created over 60 million wallets, supporting more than 200,000 developers. Newton Labs will focus on developing the Newton Protocol, which is an authorization layer for on-chain finance that executes compliance, security, and risk strategies before transactions are settled on-chain. The protocol entered the mainnet testing phase in June 2026. The first product based on the Newton Protocol, VaultKit, is a set of composable strategy tools for institutional-grade vaults.This acquisition is another transaction in Payward's ongoing expansion of its financial infrastructure platform. Previously, the company completed the acquisition of the CFTC-licensed derivatives exchange Bitnomial for up to $550 million in cash and stock, and acquired the Hong Kong stablecoin payment company Reap Technologies for $600 million. In 2025, it also acquired the retail futures platform NinjaTrader for $1.5 billion.