Kraken Raises $200M From Citadel Securities — See The Market Value After The Deal
Crypto trade Kraken has raised $200m from Citadel Securities at a $20b valuation, deepening the Wall Street agency’s push into digital belongings and bolstering the trade forward of a deliberate inventory market itemizing.
A Kraken spokesperson confirmed the spherical to Fortune, calling it a strategic funding from the almost 25-year-old market maker. This new money comes solely weeks after Kraken closed a separate $600m financing in September at a $15b valuation.
That earlier spherical drew a roster of Wall Street and Silicon Valley names, together with Jane Street, DRW, HSG, Oppenheimer, Tribe Capital and the household workplace of Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi.
Sethi confirmed the funding spherical in an X publish on Wednesday.
Kraken Confirmed Its Earlier $600M Raise, Lifting Total Recent Funding To $800M
Further, Kraken publicly confirmed the $600m elevate for the primary time, after Bloomberg reported in September that the exchange was eyeing a $20b valuation from a strategic backer.
Citadel Securities plans to work with Kraken on danger administration and market construction evaluation amongst different initiatives, in response to a press release Fortune shared.
The deal marks a transparent shift for Citadel. The Ken Griffin-founded agency had largely stayed away from making markets on crypto exchanges or investing instantly in digital belongings, citing regulatory uncertainty within the US.
After Donald Trump took workplace in January, the corporate started making ready to transact on platforms comparable to Coinbase, Binance and Crypto.com.
Kraken Builds Balance Sheet Ahead of IPO as Citadel Expands Digital Asset Footprint
Citadel’s newest strikes transcend Kraken. Earlier this month, Ripple said it raised $500m from Citadel, Fortress Investment Group and different traders, signalling broader curiosity from conventional finance in established crypto infrastructure.
For Kraken, the 2 current rounds, totaling $800m, considerably strengthen its stability sheet earlier than an preliminary public providing focused for subsequent yr. The trade plans to make use of the capital to broaden into markets outdoors North America and to construct new funds merchandise.
The firm has additionally been energetic on the acquisition entrance. Since January, Kraken has introduced a string of offers, together with its $1.5b buy of futures buying and selling platform NinjaTrader, reinforcing its push into derivatives and extra refined buying and selling instruments.
Citadel’s Move Reflects Wall Street’s View That Crypto Trading Infrastructure Is Here to Stay
Before these transactions, Kraken had raised solely $27m in enterprise capital, comparatively modest funding for one of many world’s largest crypto exchanges. The newest capital injections transfer it into a distinct league and align it extra intently with mainstream monetary establishments.
Kraken is now making ready for a public itemizing as early as 2026. Bloomberg reported that the corporate is working with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs to guide the providing, positioning the Wyoming-based trade as one of many subsequent large crypto names to check public markets.
For the digital asset business, Citadel Securities’ $200m guess on Kraken indicators that main market makers see lasting demand for regulated buying and selling venues, even after a brutal bear market and a sequence of high-profile failures.
The new valuation additionally exhibits that top-tier exchanges can nonetheless command double-digit billion worth tags after they can exhibit international scale and a transparent path to profitability.
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