Nasdaq Invests $100 Million in Kraken Parent Payward at $21 Billion Valuation

Nasdaq has invested $100 million in Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, valuing the business at $21 billion, according to Decrypt. The investment marks a sharp increase from the valuation implied by Deutsche Börse’s stake in Payward in April. That earlier transaction valued the company at $13.3 billion. Five months later, Nasdaq’s investment places Payward’s valuation $7.7 billion higher than the level implied by Deutsche Börse’s investment. The deal links one of the world’s major stock-market operators with the parent of a leading crypto exchange, while giving Payward a substantially higher reported valuation than it had in April. The investment and valuation figures were reported by Decrypt on September 10, 2026.