Quick Insights

  • Kraken parent Payward has agreed to buy Reap Technologies for $600 million in cash and stock.
  • The deal values Payward shares at about $20 billion, according to Bloomberg.
  • Reap builds stablecoin-focused business payments and cross-border settlement infrastructure.
  • The acquisition gives Kraken a larger payments footprint in Asia as it prepares for a potential IPO.

Kraken parent Payward has agreed to buy Hong Kong-based Reap Technologies in a $600 million cash-and-stock deal, expanding the exchange’s push into stablecoin payments infrastructure in Asia.

The deal values Payward shares at about $20 billion and marks Kraken’s first infrastructure acquisition in the region, Bloomberg reported, citing Payward and Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi.

Reap provides business payments infrastructure that connects traditional finance with digital assets, with a focus on stablecoin-powered settlement and cross-border money movement. The company was founded in 2018 by Daren Guo, who helped launch Stripe’s Asia-Pacific operations, and Kevin Kang, a former investment banker, according to Reap’s website.

Reap Deal Gives Kraken Stablecoin Rails in Asia

The acquisition pushes Kraken further beyond spot trading and into payments infrastructure, where stablecoins are becoming more important for business settlement, remittances and cross-border flows.

Sethi told Bloomberg that Asia is the fastest-growing market outside Europe for Payward, measured by revenue and assets on platform. He also said Reap’s existing Asia infrastructure could be expanded into the U.S. through Kraken.

The deal follows Payward’s agreement to acquire Bitnomial, a U.S. digital asset derivatives platform, for up to $550 million. Together, the acquisitions point to a broader strategy: build the regulated and payments infrastructure around Kraken before a possible public listing.

$600M
Cash-and-stock value of Payward’s Reap acquisition
$20B
Reported Payward share valuation used in the deal
Asia
Region where Reap gives Kraken new payments infrastructure
2018
Year Reap was founded in Hong Kong

Kraken Builds Payments Stack Before IPO Push

The Reap acquisition comes days after Kraken announced a partnership with MoneyGram to support crypto-to-cash withdrawals across more than 100 countries. Nakamoto Daily covered how Kraken and MoneyGram are building a wider cash off-ramp for digital assets.

That makes the Reap deal part of a larger payments move. MoneyGram gives Kraken access to physical cash pickup. Reap adds business payment and stablecoin settlement infrastructure in Asia. Bitnomial adds regulated derivatives capability in the U.S.

For Kraken, the message is clear enough. The exchange is not only preparing for higher trading volume in the next cycle. It is buying the infrastructure that could let it compete in payments, derivatives and cross-border money movement before it reaches public markets.

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