TL;DR
- Kraken confirms its financial strength and rules out an immediate IPO, unlike Gemini and Grayscale.
- Grayscale takes a decisive step by filing its Form S-1 to list under the ticker “GRAY” on the NYSE.
- Arjun Sethi emphasizes that current Bitcoin volatility does not alter the company’s long-term vision.
Kraken is in no rush to go public. It is a complex decision amidst a wave of market debuts that have shifted the crypto landscape in the United States. Direct competitors and asset managers want to take advantage of the favorable regulatory climate, but Kraken remains patient.
The platform’s co-CEO, Arjun Sethi, stated that the company enjoys robust financial health and, so far, is comfortable remaining as a private entity.
Although its debut was expected for early next year and having raised more than $530 million—including a round that valued the company at $15 billion—Sethi ratified that they have no urgency nor fear of falling behind competitors like Figure, Gemini, or Bullish that are already trading publicly.
Grayscale Accelerates While Kraken Waits
The other side of the coin is represented by Grayscale Investments. The world’s largest digital asset manager made its intentions official by filing Form S-1 with the SEC, seeking to list its Class A shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “GRAY.”
Grayscale Investments makes its move just as the regulator resumes operations after a long 43-day government shutdown, signaling a clear intention to capitalize on the moment despite having reported a year-over-year drop in net income.
Meanwhile, the market watches closely how the Trump administration has facilitated a friendlier environment for these operations, driving resounding successes like Circle’s IPO in June, whose shares skyrocketed 160% upon debut.
For now, Sethi and Kraken prefer to watch these moves from the sidelines, arguing that the first to go public are doing the hard work of “educating” the market on crypto business models. This strategic patience remains even in the face of Bitcoin’s recent correction, which has fallen 22% from its October high of $126,000, a factor that for Sethi is secondary to the long-term investment thesis which remains intact.
