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Crypto Market Update: Kraken Parent Payward Acquires Derivatives Exchange Bitnomial

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By Ronald Tech

Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Friday (April 17) as of 12 noon UTC.

Get the latest insights on Bitcoin, Ether and altcoins, along with a round-up of key cryptocurrencymarket news

Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$75,589.10, up by 4.2 percent over the last 24 hours.

Bitcoin price performance, April 17, 2026.

Chart via TradingView

Bitcoin price performance, April 17, 2026.

Bitcoin spiked to a two-month high of roughly US$77,400 on Friday, jumping 5 percent after Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi announced the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels.

Traditional markets mirrored the crypto surge, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hitting record highs while WTI crude futures plummeted 11% to $84 per barrel.

Altcoins also caught the tailwind, seeing Ethereum climb to US$2,440 and Solana popping past US$90.

President Donald Trump celebrated the news on Truth Social, declaring the strait “open for business,” though he maintained that Iranian ships face a continued blockade until broader agreement terms are fully realized.

Ether (ETH) was priced at US$2,355.08, up by 4.8 percent over the last 24 hours.

Altcoin price update

  • XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.45, up by 4.1 percent over 24 hours.
  • Solana (SOL) was trading at US$88.23, trading 3.5 percent higher over 24 hours.

​Today’s crypto news to know

Kraken deals US$550 Million Bitnomial buyout

Kraken’s parent company, Payward, has agreed to acquire Cheyenne-based derivatives exchange Bitnomial for up to US$550 million.

The cash-and-stock deal pins Payward’s overall equity valuation at an impressive US$20 billion.

The strategic purchase gives Kraken immediate access to Bitnomial’s decade-in-the-making infrastructure, which features natively built crypto settlement, collateral management, and continuous 24/7 trading markets. A

This acquisition is just the latest move in a highly aggressive growth spree for the exchange, which recently snapped up futures platform NinjaTrader for US$1.5 billion alongside several tokenization and proprietary trading firms.

The company is also in the process of maintaining its confidential IPO filing with the SEC ahead of an anticipated public listing.

See also  Power of Investment: Insights into Financial Market Trends Consumer and Business Finances: An Upbeat Outlook

In the vast economic landscape, customers display robust spending capacity, sparking a continuous cycle of economic vibrancy. As per a note by Deutsche Bank’s Binky Chadha on Sept. 12, both household and corporate balance sheets stand resilient, marking a departure from historical downturn patterns.

Despite the pointed references to the historically high absolute levels of debt in various news feeds, the critical metric remains the relationship between this debt and its serviceability, a capacity that presently boasts historical strength.

Even though surveys indicate a prevailing pessimism among consumers and business managers, the hard data underscores a different narrative - one of consistent spending patterns, possibly propelled by their sturdy financial foundations.

A Decoupling of the Stock Market from Political Factors

The conventional narrative linking Donald Trump's policy stance to favorable stock market outcomes has hit a snag. Recent observations by RBC’s Lori Calvasina, dated September 23, underscore this break in correlations.

While the divergence may seem unusual, historical instances reveal a similar trend. Despite changes such as corporate tax reforms that initially raised tax rates, businesses managed to recalibrate their strategies, leading to sustainable earnings growth and subsequent stock price appreciation.

The Unyielding Power of Compound Interest

A revelatory insight into market behavior under different presidencies unveils a profound truth - investors who remained steadfast regardless of the political climate outperformed those who based their investment decisions on party affiliations. BlackRock’s Gargi Chaudhuri reinforces this point by emphasizing the unparalleled significance of staying invested in the market, attesting to the magnified benefits of long-term commitment.

U.S. Companies: A Testimony to Success

Borrowing an idea from Mario Draghi’s discourse on European competitiveness, Deutsche Bank’s Jim Reid sheds light on a striking dichotomy between U.S. and European enterprises. The noteworthy absence of a European firm, with a valuation exceeding €100 billion and established in the last 50 years, further accentuates the exceptional growth trajectory of U.S. corporations.

As noted in a previous article on TKer, the U.S. market's superior performance can be attributed to various factors such as a culture of innovation, business-friendly regulations, and robust corporate governance practices.

Exploring Financial Trends Unveiling Financial Insights: A Look into Markets and Earnings

Canary tests SEC Limits with PEPE ETF filing

Asset manager Canary Capital has formally submitted an S-1 registration statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch a spot PEPE ETF.

If approved, the proposed fund would hold the popular frog-themed token directly, maintaining only a fractional Ethereum balance to cover associated network and transaction fees. The trust is designed to issue and redeem shares in 10,000-share baskets, accepting both cash and in-kind PEPE from authorized participants.

Sitting as the 45th largest digital asset with a market capitalization hovering around US$1.48 billion, PEPE boasts enough liquidity to justify an institutional wrapper in the eyes of Canary’s leadership.

Circle faces class action heat over US$285 million DeFi exploit

Stablecoin giant Circle is finding itself in the legal crosshairs after disgruntled Drift Protocol investors filed a class action lawsuit regarding a devastating US$285 million hack.

The controversy stems from an April 1 exploit on the Solana-based DeFi platform, during which attackers drained massive amounts of capital using weaponized administrative transfers.

The lawsuit specifically targets an eight-hour window where the hackers successfully bridged US$232 million in USDC from Solana to Ethereum via Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol. Plaintiffs argue that Circle was negligent in failing to freeze the stolen funds while the cross-chain transfers were executing.

Circle has fiercely defended its position, with executives including CEO Jeremy Allaire arguing that unilaterally freezing assets without a formal law enforcement or court order creates a dangerous moral hazard.

Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Technology for real-time news updates!

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

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