Payward, the unified financial infrastructure platform behind Kraken and NinjaTrader, has completed its acquisition of Bitnomial, making it the first company in the United States to own a fully CFTC-licensed derivatives stack built natively for digital assets. The combination gives Payward ownership of a Futures Commission Merchant, a Designated Contract Market and a Derivatives Clearing Organization — a complete regulatory infrastructure purpose-built for crypto markets over more than a decade.
The acquisition, first announced on April 17, 2026, completes a multi-year build-out of regulated derivatives infrastructure across Payward’s major markets, following its acquisition of the first licensed crypto futures platform in the United Kingdom in 2019 and the launch of a regulated EU derivatives offering in 2025. With the US stack now secured, Payward plans to introduce CFTC-regulated spot margin on Kraken first, with perpetuals and options to follow for eligible US clients.
Bitnomial will continue to operate within the Payward group with its existing licenses, regulatory structure and third-party businesses intact. Through Payward Services, the company’s B2B infrastructure platform, the acquisition also opens a new channel for partners — including fintechs, banks, brokerages and payment providers — to offer regulated US derivatives to their own end clients via a single integration, alongside existing capabilities across crypto trading, tokenized equities, staking and on/off-ramps.
PJT Partners served as exclusive financial advisor to Payward, with Jones Day acting as legal counsel and Morrison Foerster as regulatory advisor. Haynes Boone served as legal advisor to Bitnomial, with Katten Muchin Rosenman acting as regulatory counsel. The transaction positions Payward to serve clients across more than 190 countries and territories with one of the most comprehensive regulated crypto infrastructure platforms in the world.
KEY QUOTE:
“Closing this deal brings a regulated US derivatives stack to Payward, its clients and partners. A broker, exchange, clearinghouse purpose-built for digital assets, not adapted to them. 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.”
Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO, Payward and Kraken
