Kraken slashes workforce in ongoing layoffs as exchange preps for U.S. IPO

Kraken, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, is restructuring its workforce by eliminating certain positions and merging teams where there is overlap.

At the same time, the company is still hiring in critical areas, according to a spokesperson. The company regularly assesses its staffing to ensure it supports its strategic goals.

The staff reductions affect all company areas and are part of an ongoing restructuring process that started late last year.

Trump’s promise to enact more business-friendly laws has been instrumental in Kraken’s growth

In a blog post, Kraken referred to the SEC’s dismissal as a crypto turning point that ended a wasteful, politically driven campaign that had been started during the Biden administration and acted as a barrier to investment and innovation.

The spokesperson added that the company’s business is thriving, adding that they were launching more new products than ever before, increasing revenue, and quickly growing their whole product line, including announcing their acquisition of NinjaTrader earlier this year.

Earlier this year, the cryptocurrency exchange announced that it would pay $1.5 billion to acquire the retail futures trading platform NinjaTrader to increase its user base and diversify into other asset classes.

Moreover, in its most recent effort to broaden its product offerings, the San Francisco, California-based company started a phased nationwide rollout of commission-free trading for more than 11,000 stocks and exchange-traded funds listed in the United States.

Notably, U.S. President Donald Trump’s pledge to more industry-friendly regulations has prompted cryptocurrency companies like Kraken to look into expanding traditional financial markets.

At the end of 2024, Kraken cut 400 positions—roughly 15% of its workforce—shortly after Silicon Valley investor and board member Arjun Sethi was appointed co-CEO alongside David Ripley. Ripley had stepped up the CEO position in 2023 following the departure of founder Jesse Powell.

Kraken offers U.S. stock and ETF trading while getting ready for potential IPO

Kraken started offering commission-free trading for U.S.-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to compete more directly with platforms like Robinhood.

This allowed users to access traditional financial markets from within the platform they used for cryptocurrencies.

The company has not publicly confirmed its IPO plans, but the internal changes suggest the exchange is preparing itself for increased scrutiny and investor readiness. Kraken now joins other U.S.-based crypto firms like Coinbase, Marathon Digital, and Bitdeer in pursuing public market ambitions.

Furthermore, with intentions to extend access nationwide and to foreign markets like the U.K., Europe, and Australia, the Kraken stock trading rollout started in ten U.S. jurisdictions, including New Jersey, Connecticut, and Alabama. 

As a result, clients in these states could use the web interface, Kraken Pro, or mobile app to buy and sell stocks straight from their Kraken account.

A co-CEO of Kraken, Arjun Sethi, declared in a statement that cryptocurrency was recently the foundation for trading in various asset classes, including stocks, commodities, and currencies. Sethi added that customers sought a smooth, all-in-one trading experience as the need for round-the-clock worldwide access increased.

He further acknowledged that it made sense for them to move into the equity market, opening the door for asset tokenization.

As a result, Kraken was among the few crypto-native businesses that provide digital and traditional asset trading through a single account.

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