Kraken has introduced Bitcoin Vault, a new product that lets users earn bitcoin-denominated rewards on their holdings through DeFi strategies.
The product, part of Kraken Earn, allows long-term bitcoin holders to generate passive yield without selling their assets or managing positions across multiple platforms. It maintains full exposure to bitcoin's price while deploying funds automatically into lending protocols.
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Kraken announced it is switching its wrapped Bitcoin token kBTC to Chainlink's Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol. The move follows the KelpDAO exploit that resulted in a $292 million loss and heightened concerns over bridge security in DeFi. The exchange will make CCIP the exclusive cross-chain infrastructure for kBTC and future wrapped assets.
Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, announced a partnership with asset manager Franklin Templeton to develop a range of blockchain-based investment products for institutional investors.
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Kraken now allows eligible users to use tokenized stocks and ETFs as collateral for futures and margin trading without selling their holdings.
Starknet introduced strkBTC on May 12, enabling Bitcoin holders to lock BTC and access shielded balances via an ERC-20 token. The token supports both public and private modes on the Starknet network. Users gain privacy tools but must rely on new intermediaries for the service.
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Bybit has introduced tokenized fixed-income products from PIMCO and China Merchants Bank International. The offerings are available through the exchange's newly launched RWA Earn platform.
A wave of cryptocurrency exchange initial public offerings in 2025 highlighted the sector's maturation, but recent setbacks reveal heavy dependence on Bitcoin's price movements. Gemini's post-IPO struggles and Kraken's frozen listing underscore vulnerabilities to market cycles. Exchanges must prove revenue stability beyond Bitcoin rallies to sustain investor interest.
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Peer-to-peer trading startup Variational has secured $50 million in a Series A funding round to expand its onchain derivatives platform focused on real-world assets.