Kraken paid $100 million on 16 October 2025 to acquire Small Exchange, handing the company a U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission-licensed futures platform. The deal enables Kraken to sell regulated futures inside the United States and matters to institutional traders, product designers and compliance teams because it could unify spot crypto, futures and clearing services in one licensed venue.
Small Exchange is a Designated Contract Market regulated by the CFTC, and Blockworks reports that the takeover plugs Kraken straight into the official U.S. derivatives network. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi calls the buy “the foundation for a new generation of derivatives markets in the United States”, signaling a push to bring matching, clearing and risk controls together under one regulator.
The purchase is the third step in a plan launched in 2019, when Kraken paid $100 million for Crypto Facilities to gain a licensed foothold in the United Kingdom besides Europe. In May 2025 it spent $1.5 billion on NinjaTrader, adding about two million users and access to Chicago Mercantile Exchange futures. After the three deals, Kraken owns regulated derivatives businesses in the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
The future for Kraken in ths U.S
Day-to-day plans bring futures trading alongside multi-asset funding, with Intermediate or Pro customers able to fund in dollars, stablecoins or crypto and then trade futures. Historical data back to 31 August 2018 will be available for quants and product teams, and at first only liquid contracts will list while thinly traded products stay off the board.
More U.S. legitimacy follows from operating a CFTC-licensed exchange, allowing regulated custodians as well as counterparties to join. Tighter product links come from hosting spot and futures on the same platform, making transfers, margining and netting simpler.
Heavier compliance load is part of the package, requiring filings, full KYC/AML checks and answers to CFTC examiners. Path to an IPO is supported by buying ready-made licenses, aligning with Kraken’s stated plan to list its shares in 2026; the firm already raised $500 million at a $15 billion valuation.
Kraken now holds the pieces for a licensed U.S. derivatives stack. The next tests are to turn the platform on under CFTC rules and to finish the paperwork for the promised 2026 public offering.
