Kraken Awakens on the Eve of Its IPO

In July 2025, the crypto market reignited the flames of a bull run.

Unlike previous cycles, this bull market saw Bitcoin and other crypto assets deeply intertwined with U.S. equities. While most eyes were fixated on Robinhood’s tokenized stocks, a long-dormant veteran exchange quietly opened the doors to the capital markets.

That exchange is Kraken.

Once dubbed the "Big Brother of Crypto," Kraken was known for its security and stability but had long been overshadowed by industry giants like Coinbase and Binance. In the Chinese crypto community, it was often labeled as a "safe withdrawal channel," and its low-profile approach had nearly faded it into obscurity.

But now, things have changed.

In Q2 2025, Kraken ranked second in Kaiko's global spot exchange composite score with an impressive 89 points, trailing only Coinbase. The exchange reported an 18% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue, with trading volume reaching $186.8 billion. It launched the Layer-2 network Ink, introduced a tokenized stock platform xStocks, and acquired NinjaTrader—moves that have sent ripples through Wall Street as the once-slumbering crypto giant awakens.

By the end of July, Kraken was preparing its final funding round at a valuation of $15 billion, paving the way for its IPO in 2026.

The journey from being "the honest player in the geek circle" to "the next crypto unicorn" has been marked by a prolonged internal struggle. Kraken’s story is a 14-year tale of transformation.

From Card Trader to Exchange Founder

In the 1990s, Jesse Powell was just a teenager obsessed with Magic: The Gathering.

Unlike other players who focused on battles, Powell excelled in spotting arbitrage opportunities within the card market. This was his first realization: "Anything of value can be priced and traded."

In the early 2000s, Powell worked as a tech support specialist for an internet service provider. During this time, the online game Ultima Online gained popularity in the office.

As the first massive multiplayer online game featuring real-money transactions, Ultima Online had virtual castles selling for thousands of dollars. The concept of exchanging virtual items for real-world currency sparked Powell's vision of "digitizing real-world assets."

Soon after, Powell became enamored with Diablo II. Initially, he farmed monsters and sold equipment, earning a modest $25 per hour like most players. But Powell quickly discovered a more efficient strategy: buying rare items with $5 worth of in-game gold and reselling them on eBay for $30—a sixfold profit per transaction. This side hustle expanded to over 20 games, evolving into a small empire of virtual currency trading.

Powell would later describe this experience as "the prelude to cryptocurrency."

In 2010, Bitcoin entered the scene.

At first, Powell dismissed it as just another form of "World of Warcraft gold." But he soon recognized Bitcoin’s ability to solve key issues in virtual currency trading—refund disputes, delivery challenges, and high cross-border payment fees. Bitcoin’s decentralized nature and low-cost transactions made Powell realize: "This could not only transform virtual gaming economies but also revolutionize real-world financial systems."

Within a year, Powell transitioned from being a virtual currency merchant to a Bitcoin enthusiast.

In 2011, a friend he had met through Magic: The Gathering invited him to visit the office of Mt. Gox, then the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange. But instead of a casual tour, Powell found himself addressing a crisis.

During his visit, the infamous hack resulting in the theft of 880,000 Bitcoins occurred. Powell spent about a week and a half helping Mt. Gox resume operations. It was during this time that he witnessed firsthand the immense risks in the crypto world:

"If cryptocurrency wants to go mainstream, it needs a more serious player—a secure, compliant exchange that earns the trust of regulators and users."

Later that year, Jesse Powell, along with his technical co-founder Thanh Luu, officially founded Kraken in San Francisco.

Unlike other entrepreneurs who prioritized speed, Powell spent an entire year assembling a security team, undergoing third-party audits, and pioneering two-factor authentication (2FA), making Kraken one of the first crypto exchanges to publicly demonstrate its security capabilities.

Over the next decade, Kraken pursued slow and steady expansion.

In 2013, it became one of the first overseas exchanges licensed by Japan's Financial Services Agency. In 2014, Kraken assisted in the asset liquidation of Mt. Gox following its collapse, further solidifying its reputation for compliance and security. By 2020, Kraken was operating in over 200 countries and regions, holding licenses in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Japan, Australia, and other nations, establishing itself as one of the most globally compliant exchanges.

The groundwork for steady expansion had been laid; Kraken was now just waiting for the right moment to make its move.

The Transformation of a Veteran Exchange

For a long time, Kraken carried the label of being “veteran, secure, and low-profile.” Yet, lurking behind this reputation were perceptions of it being “rigid and outdated.”

In the Chinese crypto community, Kraken was often referred to as a “safe exit channel for USDT,” due to its ability to quickly convert stablecoins like USDT into fiat currencies such as USD and EUR. To many, Kraken resembled an old-fashioned bank: stable and reliable but lacking brand flair and narrative leadership.

In contrast, its U.S.-based peer Coinbase was seen as the “Apple of the crypto world”—sleek, user-friendly, and omnipresent.

Coinbase excelled in marketing, from educational content on Coinbase Learn to its 2022 Super Bowl ad, NBA partnerships, esports team sponsorships, and celebrity endorsements, gradually becoming synonymous with crypto assets in the minds of Americans.

Kraken’s first thirteen years, on the other hand, felt more like a tech geek’s personal journey—akin to “Linux”: powerful, professional, but confined to the niche geek community.

Social media metrics further illustrate the gap: while Coinbase’s followers on X reached 6.5 million, Kraken was still hovering around 1.6 million.

However, all of this changed dramatically in 2025.

Kraken began making frequent headlines, shedding its image of being honest yet invisible. In its place emerged a vibrant, action-oriented crypto powerhouse:

• Tokenized Stocks (xStocks): Partnering with Backed Finance, Kraken launched tokenized stock and ETF trading on the blockchain, covering over 60 U.S. equity assets, including Apple, Tesla, and Nvidia.

• Traditional Finance Acquisition: Kraken acquired retail futures platform NinjaTrader for $1.5 billion, expanding into derivatives and futures trading.

• Stablecoin Ecosystem: Strategic investment in stablecoin issuer StablR to promote the global adoption of EURR and USDR.

• Layer 2 Ecosystem Ink: Developing its own blockchain network to establish on-chain financial infrastructure.

• Institutional Services: Kraken Institutional began offering full-stack digital asset services to hedge funds and ETF issuers.

Kraken’s marketing transformation started even earlier. From 2023, the exchange began addressing its brand shortcomings.

Between 2023 and 2025, Kraken sponsored the Williams Racing F1 team, significantly boosting its brand visibility. It also launched Grid Pass digital collectibles (NFTs), leveraging the global livestreams of racing events to attract high-net-worth individuals.

In 2024, Kraken secured jersey sponsorship deals with major sports teams, including Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League, Atletico Madrid in La Liga, and RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga, ensuring the Kraken logo appeared in global sports broadcasts.

Kraken’s simultaneous awakening in branding and business was merely a surface manifestation of deeper changes driven by crisis.

In 2022, Kraken faced a management crisis.

Then-CEO and co-founder Jesse Powell’s strong libertarian cultural philosophy clashed with the team’s values, leading to internal discontent and organizational turmoil. Key positions remained vacant for extended periods: former CMO Matt Mason departed suddenly in February 2020 after just one year, leaving the role unfilled for two years; the product lead position saw three changes in four years; since 2021, the Chief Commercial Officer role remained vacant until it was ultimately abolished.

Faced with persistent vacancies and team divisions, Powell chose to step down as CEO in 2022, transitioning to Chairman of the Board.

This shift marked not only a transfer of power but also a deep cultural introspection within the company.

From this point, Kraken embarked on a path of transformation.

That same year, Mayur Gupta joined as CMO, initiating a global brand overhaul to reshape Kraken’s image. Sports sponsorships, NFT collectibles, and content-driven marketing allowed the “tech-geek exchange” to engage with Gen Z for the first time.

The marketing strategies Gupta spearheaded were later recognized by the market, earning him a spot on Business Insider’s list of “Most Innovative CMOs of 2024.”

More critical business changes occurred at the end of 2024, when Tribe Capital co-founder Arjun Sethi joined Kraken as Co-CEO.

Notably, Tribe Capital is Kraken’s second-largest institutional investor, and Sethi had been on Kraken’s board since 2020. To outsiders, this move was seen as shareholder-driven self-rescue.

A Silicon Valley VC veteran, Sethi believed Kraken needed a complete identity upgrade, with one keyword guiding the transformation: “breaking barriers.”

The goal was to evolve from a standalone crypto exchange into a global digital financial platform.

Under Sethi’s leadership, Kraken launched its tokenized stock trading platform xStocks, acquired NinjaTrader to expand derivatives and futures trading, and more.

Sethi stated, “We remain open to further acquisitions in the future.”

This Co-CEO sees corporate financial management as a promising new frontier for digital assets, noting that “many public and private companies are exploring holding cryptocurrencies.”

Today, Kraken has emerged from the shadows of internal conflict, no longer the silent sea monster it once was. It now has a new voice, a new brand, and a new narrative.

No longer content with being a safe harbor for crypto, Kraken aims to build a bridge between crypto assets and traditional finance, positioning itself as a core participant in the global wave of asset tokenization.

With 14 years of history under its belt, this veteran exchange is now poised to take the IPO stage with a renewed identity.

Heading Towards IPO

At the end of July 2025, The Information reported that Kraken is raising $500 million in new funding at a valuation of $15 billion, marking a 36% increase from its $11 billion valuation in 2022.

According to data from the secondary equity trading platform Forge, Kraken’s stock price in the secondary market has more than doubled over the past year, now exceeding a valuation of $10 billion.

This funding round is widely regarded within the industry as the final sprint before Kraken’s IPO, which is expected to take place as early as Q1 2026.

For Kraken, this represents an ideal policy window.

In March 2025, the U.S. SEC dropped its lawsuit against Kraken over securities violations. By June of the same year, Kraken obtained the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) license, enabling full compliance operations across the EU.

These milestones are partly attributed to Trump’s crypto-friendly policies and Kraken’s early bet on the former president.

In June 2024, Kraken co-founder Jesse Powell personally donated $1 million worth of crypto assets—mostly ETH—to Trump. When Trump launched his meme coin TRUMP, Kraken became the first U.S.-based crypto exchange to list the token.

Beyond policy advantages, Kraken has also demonstrated robust business operations and financial performance.

From a business perspective, Kraken’s revenue streams are diverse and continue to expand. These include trading fees, staking rewards, leverage and derivatives services, as well as asset custody, OTC matching, and institutional customization tools, with trading fees serving as the core revenue driver.

In 2024, Kraken achieved $1.5 billion in revenue. For the first half of 2025, quarterly revenues were recorded at $472 million and $412 million, representing year-over-year growth of 19% and 18%, respectively. Adjusted EBITDA reached $187 million and $80 million for the two quarters.

In Q2 2025, Kraken’s total trading volume reached $186.8 billion, up 19% year-over-year. Assets under management on the platform totaled $43.2 billion, marking a 47% increase, with over 15 million total customers supporting 200+ digital assets and six national currencies.

Compared to Coinbase, Kraken’s current daily trading volume stands at approximately $1.37 billion—about half that of Coinbase. However, Kraken is carving out its own independent path through differentiated business narratives.

Leading the charge is stock tokenization.

Kraken is one of the strongest advocates for stock tokenization. On its xStocks platform, launched in partnership with Backed Finance, more than 60 tokenized stocks—including Apple, Tesla, and Nvidia—are now available for trading. This opens up a new gateway for non-U.S. investors to purchase shares of U.S.-listed companies, with 24/7 trading availability. Users can also use xStocks for DeFi collateralization, liquidity pools, and smart contract applications—capabilities that traditional securities trading cannot achieve.

The future of Kraken is no longer confined to being a crypto exchange; it could evolve into “Kraken Bank.”

As early as September 2020, Kraken became the first digital asset company to receive a Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) banking license in Wyoming, USA. This allows Kraken to offer services akin to traditional banks, such as digital asset custody, USD deposit accounts, and 24/7 settlement services, while adhering to a full-reserve model to mitigate risks associated with fractional reserves.

Looking ahead, Kraken plans to roll out a broader range of financial products, including debit cards for institutions and individuals, mobile banking solutions integrated with crypto wallets, wealth management, and payment solutions.

Its official announcements consistently emphasize its vision of building a bridge between the future crypto economy and the existing financial system. This echoes Jesse Powell’s founding philosophy:

For cryptocurrency to enter the mainstream market, it needs a serious player—a platform capable of stable operations, collaboration with regulators and law enforcement, and educating banks about cryptocurrency, building the bridge from traditional systems to the crypto world.