Kraken closes $100M for IG’s Small Exchange to enter US futures market

Kraken just signed a $100 million deal to buy IG Group’s Small Exchange, pulling the crypto giant deeper into the U.S. regulated futures market.

The deal, announced Thursday by both companies, includes $32.5 million in cash and $67.5 million in stock from Kraken’s parent company Payward.

This deal gives Kraken a Designated Contract Market (DCM) license under CFTC oversight. That means it can now offer its own derivatives, including perpetual futures and 24-hour trading, straight to American customers. 

No more routing trades through other venues. Kraken will now control clearing, risk, and matching inside one platform that meets U.S. regulatory standards.

“Under CFTC oversight, Kraken can now integrate clearing, risk, and matching into one environment that meets the same standards as the largest exchanges in the world,” said Arjun Sethi, Kraken’s co-chief executive officer, in the Thursday statement.

Kraken strengthens its global derivatives network

Kraken already runs regulated futures venues in the UK and Europe, but this deal pulls its footprint tight around the U.S. market. Earlier this year, the company shelled out $1.5 billion for NinjaTrader, a retail trading platform that opened the door for CME-listed futures across crypto, equities, and commodities.

The Small Exchange acquisition now locks in the missing U.S. regulatory piece, creating what Kraken calls a fully integrated global derivatives system.

In the company’s own words, “Kraken’s acquisition of a CFTC-regulated Designated Contract Market creates the foundation for a new generation of United States derivatives markets. It is designed for scale, transparency, and efficiency.”

The new setup will link spot, futures, and margin products inside one regulated liquidity network. That integration aims to cut fragmentation, reduce funding delays, and bring the kind of 24/7 performance seen in offshore markets directly to American soil.

Kraken said the expansion aligns with its push to build global market infrastructure that connects regions under a single framework. The new system will stretch across six fiat currencies and cover over 450 assets, both digital and traditional.

Kraken described it as “a network that moves collateral in real time, nets exposure across jurisdictions, and reduces capital inefficiencies that have long held back U.S. traders.”

Meanwhile, Kraken has been preparing for a potential initial public offering (IPO) as early as the first quarter of next year, a report from Bloomberg said. The crypto company taking advantage of a more favorable regulatory climate under President Donald Trump, where enforcement actions against many in the industry, including Kraken itself, have either been dropped or paused while new crypto rules get signed.

The U.S. futures license now positions Kraken alongside major global exchanges while keeping its core operations compliant with CFTC standards.

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