CoinDesk
Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, is laying off approximately 150 employees — roughly 5% of its 3,000-person workforce — as part of an optimization push ahead of a planned public listing. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi told attendees at Consensus Miami that the exchange is "80% ready" to go public, and Payward confidentially filed a draft S-1 with the SEC back in November.
Alongside the headcount reduction, Payward is raising fresh capital at a $20 billion valuation and has been on an aggressive acquisition spree. Recent deals include stablecoin payments firm Reap for $600 million, derivatives platform Bitnomial for $550 million, and the headline transaction: a $1.5 billion purchase of retail futures platform NinjaTrader in 2025.
The IPO was paused earlier this year due to weak market conditions, but sources say the listing remains firmly on the agenda once the window…
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