Kraken, one of the world’s longest-operating cryptocurrency exchanges, today finalized its acquisition of yet another company in the Blockchain industry, this time taking over UK registered startup Crypto Facilities.
Crypto Facilities is a London-based financial services firm that provides FCA-regulated risk management and trading solutions for digital assets. The deal values the company in the nine figure range, according to the official statement.
Crypto Facilities is currently focused on providing its services in Europe, Latin America and Asia with U.S. availability on the roadmap after its buyout. Kraken said the deal enables its eligible clients to gain access to futures on six cryptocurrency pairs, providing a unique instrument to trade and hedge Cryptocurrencies .
This new offering will adhere to Crypto Facilities’ professional standards in terms of regulatory compliance, secure asset custody and counterparty credit risk management.
Over the past two years, Kraken has transformed itself into a global crypto powerhouse, establishing its strong presence in both the US and European Bitcoin markets. Once the largest Bitcoin exchange in the Europe, Kraken has been also a strong contender in the US market, with around three percent market share.
Kraken acquired various crypto exchanges including Chicago-based non-custodial service Glidera and Dutch Bitcoin exchange CleverCoin.
Plans for expansion but service suspended in Japan
The news comes a few months after the San Francisco-based venue fired 57 employees from its Halifax office in Canada. Kraken CEO Jesse Powell said that staff have been cut in an effort to reduce costs and better align with the pace of growth in the industry
The rumors of the closure come nearly six months after the exchange told Business Insider that it is preparing to double its headcount in 2018 and that there is a significant shortage of people who have expertise and acumen in this space. A person familiar with the company’s operations told the publication that “it is on the fast track to 1,000 employees and it’s prepared to add 800 people to its staff in 2018.”
However, in April Kraken announced that it was pulling its trading services for Japanese residents, citing the rising costs of doing business for its decision, though it said it may re-enter the country in the future.
Commenting on the news, Kraken CEO Jesse Powell said: “I’m thrilled to welcome the Crypto Facilities team into the Kraken family. We are excited to introduce eligible clients to these industry leading futures and index products. Over the coming months, our teams will continue to enhance and expand these offerings. We’ve got great stuff in store for traders and institutional clients in 2019.”
Timo Schlaefer, Crypto Facilities CEO and Founder, added: “It has been our mission to build the most sophisticated, powerful and user friendly cryptocurrency trading platform. Teaming up with Kraken allows us to innovate the next generation of products and tremendously boosts the value we are able to provide to our clients.”
