Kraken parent Payward builds platform beyond crypto trading

Payward is building a unified financial platform that extends beyond crypto trading. Payward has spent billions on acquisitions over the past two years. The acquisitions expanded Payward into futures and derivatives. Payward also moved into tokenized stocks. Payward pursued additional banking capabilities in the United States and Europe. The platform aims to combine trading, banking, asset management and services for other businesses under one infrastructure. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi said Payward is profitable and is in no rush to pursue an initial public offering. Sethi said Payward is one platform with one balance sheet and one regulatory stack. Sethi said the strategy centers on one ledger that allows money and assets to move between products. Coinbase is building a platform spanning crypto, stocks, derivatives and prediction markets. Binance is combining trading, payments, investing and yield products in one platform.