Kraken, one of the world’s largest and most reputable cryptocurrency exchanges, has officially launched its Crypto Derivatives trading platform for professional UK clients.
Alexia Theodorou, head of Kraken’s derivatives, said company Recently, we have started recruiting “quietly”.
She said as a new product, the exchange gradually unfolded it and first confirmed that it reached several specific clients. She kept saying it’s currently open to 100% of clients who need to go through a specific onboarding process for derivatives.
Theodorou noted that derivatives account for around 70% to 75% of the total amount of crypto trading volume. Kraken is currently seeing similar quantities in its derivatives and spot markets, but she highlighted that crypto derivatives are growing faster than spot trading.
Kraken Powers UK Derivatives trade through the MTF platform
According to Theodorou, rapid growth is why the platform is doubling derivatives. Given the interest from institutional clients and wider market trends, this represents a significant investment for UK companies. The Derivatives head said expanding access to flagship products in key markets is a major milestone.
Kraken’s UK derivatives offering will be facilitated through the Kraken Multerateral Trading Facility (MTF), a regulatory platform run by Crypto facilities, which Kraken acquired in 2019 in more than $100 million transactions.
The Crypto Facility became the first crypto company to obtain an MTF license from the FCA in 2020.
Kraken’s derivative suite includes a variety of advanced products, including permanent multi-chorale contracts pioneered in the crypto space.
Kraken doubles derivatives as institutional demand increases
Theodorou points out that these contracts are highly capital efficient trading tools for institutional clients. They can also experiment with more advanced spot trading strategies, such as hedging and other market-neutral approaches, while allowing traders to apply leverage using different forms of collateral.
According to the formula, the cryptographic derivatives are still in the early stages of development. In contrast, the stock market can usually see the amount of derivatives trading 10-15 times higher than the spot market. Much of the delay in the adoption of cryptographic derivatives comes from fragmented regulatory frameworks around the world. This limits Kraken’s access to major markets such as the US, South Korea and parts of Europe.
Theodorou explained that while the Spot Crypto Market is only beginning to see regulatory clarity through frameworks such as Mica and similar efforts worldwide, derivatives have long been under strict regulatory oversight. She said that providing these products requires specific licenses tailored to each jurisdiction.
Kraken has taken steps to expand the presence of global derivatives and recently acquired a MiFID II-regulated entity in Cyprus and the US-based Ninjatrader. These moves are part of the exchange’s broader strategy to expand derivatives offered in new markets. The company is also diversifying its services by launching US stock trading on both mobile and web platforms.
Theodorou added that as the platform continues to deploy this regulated product through its licensing initiative, it will prioritize the jurisdictions it wants to target next.
Kraken, who is reportedly preparing its public list, generated $1.5 billion in revenue in 2024. Platform Recently I went on an adventure into the stock trading scene.
The company recently announced that American users can quickly trade over 11,000 shares and ETFs without paying a commission.
The Securities and Exchange Commission officially It was dropped The lawsuit against Kraken last month following similar firings against Robin Hood and Coinbase. At the time, Kraken called it a “vain, politically motivated campaign” against the crypto industry.
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