By Amara Osei

Payward, the owner of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, reported a 67% year-over-year decline in third-quarter adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) to $60 million. The figures appeared in a shareholder letter that Bloomberg reviewed.

What do Payward’s third-quarter numbers show?

Total platform margin, the reporting measure Payward now uses in place of adjusted revenues, fell 12% year over year to $487 million. The shareholder letter reviewed by Bloomberg also put total platform transaction volume at $353 billion, down 30% from the prior year.

Funded accounts, meaning accounts holding any positive balance, increased 37% to 7.1 million. The 37% account gain did not translate into higher year-over-year transaction volume or platform margin, leaving monetization of the expanded customer base as the immediate operating issue.

Adjusted EBITDA remained positive at $60 million despite the 67% annual contraction. Payward also improved from the second quarter: adjusted EBITDA rose 163% from that period, and total platform margin increased 12%.

The two comparisons show a partial quarterly recovery rather than a return to prior-year performance. A 163% sequential rise in adjusted EBITDA followed the 67% year-over-year decline, while platform margin posted a 12% sequential increase after a 12% annual fall. Funded accounts, up 37%, supplied the clearest growth indicator.

Why did trading activity weaken?

Payward’s decline came amid a downturn in cryptocurrency prices, Bloomberg said. Bitcoin climbed roughly 40% from the middle of August to the start of October, then retreated as inflation fears and concern over how U.S. midterm elections might affect the industry weighed on the market.

Trading conditions matter because many exchanges depend on trading fees for the largest share of revenue. Activity tends to slow when prices slide, Bloomberg said, a pattern consistent with Payward’s 30% decline in transaction volume and 12% fall in platform margin.

How is Payward diversifying?

Payward is pushing into tokenized stocks and similar businesses to broaden its revenue base, according to Bloomberg. The strategy seeks to reduce reliance on the trading-fee model that Bloomberg linked to the latest quarterly decline.

• U.S. perpetual futures: Payward intends to offer onchain perpetual futures (futures contracts without a fixed expiry, conducted on blockchain infrastructure) to U.S. clients, subject to regulatory sign-off.
• Saldo Bank: Payward agreed in October to purchase Saldo Bank.
• UAE expansion: Kraken intends to enter the United Arab Emirates once Dubai regulators grant complete authorization.
• Prediction markets and company token: Payward plans to enter prediction markets (markets in which contracts settle on an event outcome) and issue a token of its own. The shareholder letter gave no timing for either initiative, Bloomberg said.

These four initiatives extend Payward beyond exchange-related trading activity. However, the available schedule differs by project: regulatory approval conditions the U.S. futures offering and UAE entry, while the shareholder letter set no timing for prediction markets or the company token.

What does the Nasdaq backing change?

Nasdaq’s venture capital arm agreed in September to invest $100 million in Payward to build infrastructure for tokenized equities, or digital representations of listed shares. The investment values Payward at $21 billion.

Nasdaq and Payward expect to launch Nasdaq Equity Tokens in the second quarter of 2027. Kraken’s platform will serve as a distribution channel for tokenized versions of Nasdaq-listed stocks, giving the partnership a defined product, timetable and distribution role.

The $100 million commitment supplies project funding, while the $21 billion valuation provides a benchmark for the private company. The 2027 launch target also places the Nasdaq Equity Tokens rollout beyond the quarter in which adjusted EBITDA fell to $60 million and funded accounts reached 7.1 million.

When could Payward go public?

Bloomberg reported that Payward’s initial public offering may not take place before next year. The potential timetable follows the September $100 million Nasdaq investment, the October Saldo Bank agreement and product expansion that remains partly dependent on regulatory decisions.

The latest disclosed operating baseline therefore combines $60 million of adjusted EBITDA, $487 million of platform margin, $353 billion of transaction volume and 7.1 million funded accounts. The 30% volume decline and 12% margin contraction explain the strategic weight Payward places on diversification.