Kraken Parent Payward Agrees to Buy Reap for $600M to Expand B2B Stablecoin Payments

Payward, Kraken's parent company, has agreed to acquire Hong Kong-based Reap Technologies Holdings for $600 million in a cash-and-stock deal to bolster its B2B payments infrastructure with stablecoin-native, card-issuing, and globally regulated capabilities. Initial reports confirmed the acquisition's focus on expanding into cross-border settlements and merchant services in Asia, complementing Kraken's recent MoneyGram partnership for fiat off-ramps across 100+ countries. The move diversifies revenue from trading cycles ahead of a potential IPO and signals accelerating institutional stablecoin adoption, potentially enhancing BTCUSD utility through improved crypto infrastructure.