PANews reported on May 4 that, according to The Block, Kraken's parent company, Payward, has completed its acquisition of Bitnomial, thereby obtaining a full range of derivatives licenses from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), including licenses for Futures Commission Merchant (FCM), Designated Contract Market (DCM), and Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO).

Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi stated that the company will first launch spot margin services on Kraken, followed by perpetual contracts and options products. Bitnomial, a Chicago-based crypto-native exchange, holds a Class III license issued by the CFTC, allowing it to operate a full-stack domestic digital asset derivatives business.

The acquisition is expected to be worth up to $550 million, including cash and stock, valuing Payward at $20 billion. Payward plans to expand its Bitnomial team and continue operating its derivatives business under existing licenses and regulatory frameworks. Furthermore, Payward revealed that it previously received a $200 million investment from Deutsche Börse Group and is preparing for a potential public listing.

Previously, it was reported that Payward planned to acquire Bitnomial, a U.S.-licensed derivatives stack, for $550 million .