Payward to Buy Magic Labs Wallet Business
Payward, the parent of crypto exchange Kraken, has been expanding beyond trading into a broader infrastructure provider for financial institutions and fintechs. Magic Labs, founded in 2018, supplies embedded, non-custodial wallets that businesses can add directly to their products. Bringing that technology into Payward Services would give clients a single integration for trading, custody, tokenized assets, fiat on- and off-ramps, derivatives and wallets.
Payward said on July 27, 2026, it signed an agreement to acquire Magic Labs’ wallet-as-a-service business through an asset sale. Financial terms were not disclosed, and the transaction is expected to close within weeks, subject to customary conditions. Magic’s infrastructure has powered more than 60 million wallets for over 200,000 developers and more than $10 billion in stablecoin volume. Magic Labs will become Newton Labs and focus on Newton Protocol, its authorization layer for onchain finance.
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The history behind this eventKraken Parent Payward Acquires Crypto Derivatives Exchange Bitnomial for $550 Million
Bitnomial is a U.S. crypto-native derivatives exchange with three types of CFTC authorization: futures commission merchant, designated contract market and derivatives clearing organization. The acquisition allows Payward to integrate trading, brokerage and clearing, reducing its reliance on third-party platforms and expanding Kraken's presence in regulated U.S. markets.
Payward announced the acquisition agreement on April 17, 2026, and completed the transaction on May 1. It paid up to $550 million in cash and stock, with Payward equity valued at $20 billion for the deal. The company plans to launch spot margin services on Kraken and NinjaTrader first, followed by perpetual contracts and options.
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