Key Takeaways
Payward Inc. agreed to amass Reap Applied sciences for as much as $600 million, valuing Kraken’s guardian at $20 billion.Reap practically tripled income and volumes in 2025, with the worldwide stablecoin card market now exceeding $18 billion yearly.The deal is anticipated to shut within the second half of 2026, increasing Payward Companies into card issuance and cross-border funds.
Payward Locks in $600M Reap Acquisition as Stablecoin Card Market Tops $18 Billion
The transaction provides card issuance and stablecoin-powered cross-border cost infrastructure to Payward Companies, the corporate’s B2B platform. Payward Companies at present offers companions a single integration level for crypto buying and selling, custody, tokenized belongings, on/off-ramps, and derivatives. Reap extends that into international playing cards and funds.
Reap has constructed a platform that connects conventional monetary rails, together with card networks and banking techniques, with stablecoin settlement through a single API. The corporate helps company card issuing, cross-border payouts, and treasury administration for companies working throughout Asia, South America, and different areas.
Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward, described stablecoins because the “settlement substrate” for a monetary system transferring towards programmable cash and autonomous execution. He pointed to a number of milestones on Payward’s platform, together with Krak launching throughout 110 international locations on day one and xStocks crossing $29 billion in cumulative quantity in its first 12 months.
Daren Guo, Co-Founder and CEO of Reap, mentioned the worldwide stablecoin and crypto card market now exceeds $18 billion yearly. He famous that Reap practically tripled income and volumes in 2025 and expanded its licensing footprint from Asia into South America. Guo mentioned becoming a member of Payward was a step towards connecting stablecoin playing cards to a full suite of crypto-native monetary providers.
Reap will proceed working as a standalone platform below Guo’s management, retaining its model and go-to-market technique. It can acquire entry to Payward’s international liquidity, custody, settlement infrastructure, and regulatory licenses in america and the European Union.
The deal creates a complementary regulatory footprint throughout a number of markets. Reap’s present licenses within the Asia-Pacific area assist Payward increase throughout APAC and the Americas. Payward’s EU and U.S. licenses, in flip, open corridors for Reap in Europe and American markets. Collectively, the 2 corporations plan to increase stablecoin-powered funds infrastructure into high-growth markets throughout the Center East, North Africa, and Latin America.
Reap can be a participant within the International Greenback Community, connecting it additional to stablecoin settlement infrastructure.
The acquisition follows Payward’s latest purchases of NinjaTrader, Bitnomial, and Backed, persevering with a technique of constructing out the platform by means of focused, capability-focused offers. Payward operates on a shared structure overlaying one international liquidity pool, one unified threat and margin engine, one collateral and settlement system, and one compliance and licensing framework.
Stablecoin adoption for enterprise funds and treasury administration has been climbing. Within the launch, Payward described the acquisition as a part of its push to construct unified monetary infrastructure throughout buying and selling, custody, tokenized belongings, and funds.
The mixed platform would let Payward Companies companions embed card issuance, cross-border funds, and stablecoin treasury instruments alongside the corporate’s present capabilities, with out assembling a number of distributors or managing separate techniques.
