Key Takeaways:
Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, completed its acquisition of Bitnomial on May 1, securing the first fully CFTC-licensed crypto-native derivatives stack in the United States. The deal provides Payward with a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM), a Designated Contract Market (DCM), and a Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO).
"Closing this deal brings a regulated US derivatives stack to Payward, its client and partners," said Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward and Kraken. "We're starting with spot margin on Kraken, with perpetuals and options to follow. All under CFTC regulation, all in the US."
The acquisition, first announced on April 17, 2026, completes a multi-year strategy by Payward to build out its regulated derivatives infrastructure. This follows the acquisition of a licensed UK crypto futures platform in 2019 and the launch of a regulated EU derivatives offering in 2025.
The move is set to significantly enhance Payward's competitive position in the US, allowing its subsidiaries Kraken and NinjaTrader to offer CFTC-regulated crypto derivatives directly to eligible American clients. The first product to launch will be spot margin trading on Kraken.
Bitnomial will continue to operate with its existing licenses and regulatory structure within the Payward group. Payward announced plans to scale Bitnomial's team and operations to support the expansion of its US derivatives capabilities.
The acquisition also opens a new B2B channel through Payward Services, the company's infrastructure platform. This will allow partners such as fintechs, banks, and brokerages to offer regulated U.S. crypto derivatives to their own clients through a single integration, alongside existing services like crypto trading and staking.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
