USDPayward Buys Reap, Expands Stablecoin Payments, Launches Kraken U.S. Spot Margin
Deal Connects Reap Acquisition, Bitnomial Derivatives Infrastructure and Kraken’s Regulated Margin Rollout
TL;DR
- Payward will acquire Reap Technologies for $600 million to expand stablecoin payments and cross-border services.
- Reap will remain standalone, with Daren Guo and Kevin Kang continuing to lead it.
- Kraken launched regulated U.S. spot margin trading after Payward completed its Bitnomial acquisition.
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Payward, the parent company of Kraken, announced a major deal to acquire Hong Kong-based Reap Technologies for $600 million in a cash-and-shares deal aimed at expanding stablecoin payments, corporate cards, programmable payment APIs and cross-border financial services.
The deal marks Payward’s first major infrastructure purchase in Asia and one of its largest acquisitions to date. Reap focuses on stablecoin payment solutions that help businesses send and receive funds internationally through digital currency rails. Reap’s infrastructure also supports crypto-related “U cards,” which allow users to spend digital assets in real-world transactions.
Payward plans to use Reap to move faster in business-to-business payments and strengthen cross-border settlement systems built around stablecoins such as USDC. The planned products include corporate cards and programmable payment APIs designed to help businesses automate and manage payments with faster transactions, lower fees and shorter settlement periods.
Reap will continue operating as a standalone platform inside Payward’s ecosystem. Reap co-founders Daren Guo and Kevin Kang will remain in leadership roles after the acquisition, keeping the company’s existing operations in place while adding Payward’s support.
The transaction has not closed. It remains subject to regulatory approval in Hong Kong and Singapore, and the acquisition is expected to close in the second half of 2026.
Payward Builds Payments and Derivatives Infrastructure
Payward’s Reap deal follows a broader acquisition push that has already expanded Kraken’s parent beyond crypto trading. Payward completed its Bitnomial acquisition on May 4, 2026, in a transaction worth up to $550 million in cash and equity, giving it a full U.S. crypto derivatives stack regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
The Bitnomial acquisition gave Payward control of futures broker, exchange and clearinghouse licenses. Bitnomial brought a Designated Contract Market license for exchange operations, a Derivatives Clearing Organization license for clearing activity and a Futures Commission Merchant license for brokerage services.
Bitnomial was founded in 2014 and spent more than a decade building its CFTC license base. Before the purchase, Kraken relied on third-party clearinghouses to settle derivatives trades. Bringing clearing in-house gives Payward a path to improve settlement speed, reduce counterparty dependencies and avoid bottlenecks during volatile market conditions.
Payward’s acquisition of NinjaTrader in 2025 created another part of the structure. Together, NinjaTrader and Bitnomial connect retail futures trading with regulated U.S. crypto derivatives infrastructure, while Reap adds a stablecoin payments layer focused on business transfers and international settlement.
Kraken Adds Regulated U.S. Spot Margin
Kraken launched crypto spot margin trading for eligible U.S. clients on Kraken Pro on May 6, 2026, after Payward completed the Bitnomial acquisition. The product gives eligible users access to up to 10x leverage through a CFTC-regulated structure.
The spot margin product allows eligible U.S. clients to trade supported crypto assets with leverage, go long or short, trade around the clock and use existing holdings as collateral instead of selling them first. It does not require users to qualify as accredited investors.
Kraken Pro now displays risk metrics for spot margin users, including liquidation price, borrowing costs and available margin. The platform also offers 24/7 stop-loss functionality, while risk is isolated to the collateral allocated to each position rather than a user’s full portfolio.
Spot margin trading is provided by NinjaTrader Clearing, LLC, doing business as Kraken Derivatives US, a CFTC-registered Futures Commission Merchant and NFA Member with NFA ID 0309379. Financing is provided by Payward Accredited LLC.
Darius Tabatabai, Head of Kraken Pro, said, “Margin is a foundational component of global crypto markets, enabling more efficient capital deployment and a broader range of trading strategies.” He added, “For too long, US traders have been excluded from accessing this functionality in a regulated environment. This launch brings a critical piece of market structure onshore in a way that prioritizes transparency, risk management, and regulatory compliance.”
Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward and Kraken, said, “Closing this deal brings a regulated US derivatives stack to Payward, its client and partners. A broker, exchange, clearinghouse purpose-built for digital assets, not adapted to them.” Sethi added, “That stack is what makes the next set of products possible. We’re starting with spot margin on Kraken, with perpetuals and options to follow. All under CFTC regulation, all in the US.”
Payward said Bitnomial will continue operating inside the Payward group with its existing licenses, regulatory structure and third-party businesses intact. Payward also plans to scale Bitnomial’s team and operations as it expands U.S. derivatives capabilities.
FAQ
What is Payward buying?
Payward will acquire Reap Technologies, a Hong Kong-based stablecoin payments company.
Has the Reap deal closed?
No. It still needs regulatory approval in Hong Kong and Singapore.
What did Bitnomial add to Payward?
Bitnomial added CFTC-regulated exchange, clearinghouse and futures broker infrastructure.
What did Kraken launch after Bitnomial closed?
Kraken launched U.S. crypto spot margin trading for eligible clients on Kraken Pro.
This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.
