Kraken's parent company, Payward, acquires Bitnomial, enhancing U.S. derivatives trading capabilities.
Payward, the parent company of Kraken, has successfully acquired the Bitnomial trading platform, making it the first U.S. entity to hold a complete set of CFTC licenses for derivative trading.
While the specific terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, earlier valuations had placed Bitnomial at up to $550 million. This acquisition positions Payward as a broker, exchange, and clearinghouse, facilitating regulated margin trading, perpetual contracts, and options for clients of Kraken and NinjaTrader in the U.S.
Kraken's co-CEO, Arjun Sethi, indicated that the initial product to be launched under this new framework will be spot margin trading, with plans to introduce additional derivatives in the future.
Bitnomial will operate within the Payward group, retaining its existing licenses and personnel. This acquisition allows external partners, including fintech services and banks, to offer regulated financial instruments through Payward Services.
With this deal, Payward continues to expand its network of licensed platforms, having previously launched similar operations in the UK in 2019 and in the European Union by 2025.
SOL Strategies Acquires HoudiniSwap for $18 Million
Investment firm SOL Strategies has purchased the cross-chain aggregator HoudiniSwap for $18 million. HoudiniSwap, which focuses on privacy and non-custodial asset exchanges across various networks, generated around $13 million in revenue in 2023.
The acquisition is intended to enhance the implementation of Solana technologies within institutional finance, moving beyond staking and validator management to improve transaction routing and cross-chain liquidity.
Director Steven Ehrlich mentioned that this acquisition will provide a new revenue stream, thereby stabilizing cash flow and reducing reliance on market fluctuations.
The $18 million deal consists of $8.25 million in cash, a $5.75 million promissory note maturing in six months, and $4 million in company shares. SOL Strategies confirmed it would not liquidate its SOL holdings to finance the acquisition.
Adam Back Invests in Capital B
Capital B, a French public company, has secured €1.1 million ($1.28 million) through a warrant issuance, with Blockstream CEO Adam Back as the primary investor. Back acquired 10 million warrants, each allowing for the purchase of one share at a future price of $0.98.
As a result of this investment, Back now holds a 9.97% stake in Capital B, totaling 39.5 million shares. The funds raised will be utilized to expand the company’s Bitcoin strategy, leading to a 6.5% increase in its stock price. Capital B ranks 25th among public cryptocurrency holders, with assets amounting to 2,943 BTC.
It is noteworthy that Kraken had previously suspended its IPO plans just four months after announcing them.
