Deutsche Börse is taking a $200 million stake in Kraken’s parent. The deal gives the Frankfurt exchange operator a foothold in one of the oldest crypto venues as it builds trading and settlement services on blockchain rails.
The investment buys existing shares in Payward Inc. and equates to a 1.5% fully diluted stake, according to the statement. Closing is expected in the second quarter, subject to regulatory approvals, and the seller was not disclosed. Bloomberg’s calculations put Kraken around $13.3 billion, below the $20 billion mark from a November share sale, as Kraken targets an IPO as soon as this year.
The stake follows a partnership announced in December that links Kraken with Deutsche Börse’s FX venue 360T and its broader tokenized-securities push through Clearstream. The move also fits a wider pattern of exchange operators buying minority positions in crypto platforms, including Intercontinental Exchange’s roughly $200 million investment in OKX. Bitcoin’s drawdown has pressured exchange economics, but regulated access points are still expanding.
“It’s a perfect partner for us to further accelerate on this path of creating a fully hybrid market infrastructure,” said Thomas Book, a member of Deutsche Börse’s management board. He said the aim is “one integrated value chain” across tokenized and digital assets. Kraken said “the progress since then has been encouraging,” calling the investment “a further reflection of the trust” built between the firms.
The near-term test is operational, not promotional. Kraken has been adding regulated hooks, including access for its banking arm to the Federal Reserve’s core payments system and MiFID-regulated crypto derivatives in the EU, while disclosing an extortion attempt tied to limited client data access. Next catalyst is regulatory approval of the Deutsche Börse stake and whether Kraken’s IPO plan holds as security posture and market volumes stay under scrutiny.
