The parent company of the crypto exchange Kraken, Payward, is deliberately freezing the initial public offering (IPO) process, postponing a potential stock market debut to the second quarter of 2027. Instead, management is focusing on an ambitious project — building an infrastructure bridge between traditional finance and blockchain.
Payward filed a confidential IPO application in November 2025, but by March 2026 the process was already suspended. Based on my data, the company made a strategic decision not to rush the listing, concentrating efforts on a more important direction — tokenization of assets of the world's leading exchanges.
Strategic pivot toward institutional infrastructure
The key event was the announcement of the tokenization of the 100 largest companies on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). Their shares will be converted into xStocks tokens with 1:1 backing. The program is already available to investors from more than 110 countries, although access for residents of the UK and the US is temporarily restricted.
The LSE plans to launch trading of these tokens on the round-the-clock platform LSE 24, as soon as regulators allow it. Since June 2025, the volume of xStocks has reached an impressive $40 billion, and the number of holders has exceeded 200,000. This is a serious indicator of market demand for hybrid instruments.
In parallel, Nasdaq signed a similar agreement in March. Together with Payward, an interface is being developed for moving tokenized shares between regulated venues and public blockchains. The launch is scheduled for the first half of 2027. Deutsche Börse also acquired about 1.5% of Payward for $200 million in April, confirming European exchanges' interest in this infrastructure.
Why the IPO pause is logical
Financial indicators explain the caution. In November 2025, Payward raised $800 million at a valuation of $20 billion, but the April deal already valued the company at approximately $13.3 billion. Wall Street infrastructure was bought, but the valuation has dropped by nearly a third over these months.
In the second quarter, adjusted revenue grew by 17% to $508 million, but EBITDA collapsed by 71% year-over-year — to $23 million. Trading volume on the platform declined by 18% to $310 billion. With such operating results, going to the public market would have been reckless.
Even in a frozen market, Payward continues to acquire assets. In May, the company closed the deal to purchase the derivatives venue Bitnomial, obtaining a full set of regulated derivatives in the US. This stack is planned to be leased out, opening new monetization opportunities.
My analysis: Payward demonstrates maturity by choosing a long-term strategy of building institutional infrastructure instead of short-term IPO hype. Given the decline in valuation in private rounds, waiting for market stabilization and the launch of tokenization with the LSE and Nasdaq could ensure a much higher capitalization upon going public in 2027. However, the risks of regulatory pressure and cryptocurrency market volatility remain significant factors capable of disrupting these plans.