Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken is considering a major capital raise ahead of a potential initial public offering (IPO) early next year, Bloomberg reported on March 24. 

Citing anonymous sources, Bloomberg said Kraken is exploring a debt package worth anywhere between $200 million and $1 billion. The exchange is reportedly in preliminary talks with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase about facilitating the transaction.

The funds would be used to support Kraken’s growth and not for operational expenses, Bloomberg cited the source as saying. 

Bloomberg has been reporting about Kraken’s IPO ambitions for the better part of a year. Talks of going public have intensified following the election of US President Donald Trump, with Bloomberg reporting that Kraken’s IPO could come in the first quarter of 2026.

A Kraken representative declined to comment on the potential debt package when contacted by Cointelegraph.

Kraken is one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges, facilitating more than $1.1 billion in trading volume over the past 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data. 

The exchange grew rapidly in 2024, with year-end financial statements showing $1.5 billion in revenue — a gain of 128% from 2023. The company’s adjusted earnings reached $380 million for the year. 

Kraken’s year-end financial statements show significant growth in revenue, funded accounts and assets. Source: Kraken

Related: Kraken secures MiFID license to offer derivatives in Europe

Kraken’s latest acquisition

Kraken is expanding its footprint in the derivatives market with the $1.5 billion acquisition of NinjaTrader, a popular brokerage service specializing in futures contracts. The acquisition is part of the exchange’s broader push into multi-asset services, including equities and payments. 

NinjaTrader was founded in 2003 and is registered with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission. 

Source: Arjun Sethi

The acquisition suggests crypto companies are growing their businesses with confidence following the election of a pro-crypto Republican administration. As Cointelegraph reported, Kraken was one of several crypto exchanges to be freed from enforcement action by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. 

A positive regulatory climate may have contributed to Kraken’s decision to resume crypto staking services for US clients after a nearly two-year hiatus. Clients in 37 states can now access staking services across 17 cryptocurrencies, including Ether (ETH) and Solana (SOL).

Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom

The Bhutan government moved $63 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) on March 24 to three wallets, according to Onchain Lens, which analyzed data from Arkham Intelligence.

One of the wallets now holds 600 BTC worth approximately $53 million at time of writing.

Bhutan has leveraged its abundant hydroelectric power to mine Bitcoin since 2019. In September 2024, Arkham indicated that it had found the first wallet tied to the Bhutan government’s investment arm, Druk Holdings. After the March 24 transfers, the wallet holds $889.9 million invested in Bitcoin.

Source: Onchain Lens

The statistics indicate that Bhutan’s cryptocurrency holdings represent 30.7% of its gross domestic product (GDP), which, according to the latest data from the World Bank, reached $2.9 billion in 2023.

Although Bitcoin is the primary holding of the Bhutan government, the nation does not seem to be pursuing a solely Bitcoin-based strategic reserve. Other stacks in the Druk Holdings wallet are $334,580 of Ether (ETH) and smaller amounts of LinqAI (LNQ), Phil (PHIL), and Apu Apustaja (APU), among other coins.

Crypto holdings of the Bhutan government as of March 24, 2025. Source: Arkham Intelligence

In October 2024, Bhutan moved $66 million of its BTC holdings to Binance. Over the past two months, the government has been moving small portions of Bitcoin and Ether out of its main wallet to other addresses.

Governments adopt cryptocurrency reserves

Bhutan’s national government isn’t the only government body adopting cryptocurrency in the country — the practice has filtered down to the city level as well. In January 2025, Bhutan’s Gelephu Special Administrative Region announced plans to recognize a variety of digital assets as part of its strategic reserve.

Related: Bitcoin’s role as a reserve asset gains traction in US as states adopt

Governments that have adopted a Bitcoin strategic reserve have seen their holdings multiply during this 2024-present bull run. El Salvador saw the value of its Bitcoin holdings surge to $100 million in November 2024, and the United States government now holds over $17 billion in Bitcoin.

While national governments garner the most attention, some state governments are thinking of creating Bitcoin reserves as well. In the US, Texas has passed its Bitcoin reserve bill, although it still must be signed into law by the state’s governor.

Bitcoin reserve bills in some states like Arizona are inching closer to becoming law, though a few states have already rejected their Bitcoin bills for a variety of reasons.

Magazine: Chinese Tether laundromat, Bhutan enjoys recent Bitcoin boost: Asia Express

Bitcoin (BTC) delivered its best weekly performance in over two months, climbing 4.24% to an intra-day high at $88,804. BTC also reclaimed a bullish stance on the charts, closing above the daily chart’s 200-day exponential moving average (EMA).

Bitcoin 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

With a weekly close above $84,600, the likelihood of BTC testing $90,000 increases. However, BTC price must overcome the descending resistance level to make a sustainable move at the range highs.

Bitcoin correction is a “healthy pause”

Bitcoin researcher Axel Adler Jr. explained that based on onchain metrics, the current price cycle reflects a healthy consolidation rather than the beginning of a bear market. Adler Jr. noted that BTC has not yet entered “overheated” territory in this cycle, as indicated by BTC’s Investor Price Model. 

This metric flashed a sell signal twice during 2021, and the model incorporates the realized cap, thermo cap, investor price, and Bitcoin supply. 

Using Bitcoin’s cumulative value days destroyed (CVDD), Adler argued that the market remains in a “growth stage.”

Bitcoin cumulative value days. Source: adlercryptoinsights / Substack

The CVDD metric monitors selling activity among long-term holders. The current bull cycle (2024-2025) triggered a sell signal just once, back in March 2024. In a Substack article, Adler said,

“Considering the current market dynamics, we might see seasoned investors taking profits once Bitcoin breaches key peak levels ($123K), potentially exerting downward pressure on the price.”

From the above analysis, Adler Jr. predicted that Bitcoin could climb to $130,000 within 90 days.

Related: Bitcoin must reclaim this key 2025 level to avoid new lows — Research

Bitcoin open interest jumps $1.5 billion in 24 hours 

According to Velo data, Bitcoin’s open interest (OI), representing the total value of outstanding futures contracts, jumped by over $1.5 billion in the last 24 hours.

Meanwhile, the funding rate, which reflects the cost of holding leveraged positions, stayed near neutral. This suggests that neither bullish (long) nor bearish (short) traders were dominantly in control.  

Bitcoin price and aggregated open interest. Source: Velo.chart

Bitcoin experienced a surge in upward momentum late on Sunday, March 23rd. Weekend price rallies like this often occur with lower trading volume, as larger market participants tend to step back until the start of the week. In such a scenario, leveraged trades amplifying the action could heavily influence the price movement.

In an X post, anonymous crypto analyst IT Tech PL also pointed out the OI level rise after BTC exceeded $87,500. However, the analyst added, 

“But here’s the catch: High OI + Rapid Price Increase = Risk of Liquidation Cascades!”

Bitcoin 4-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

From a technical perspective, Bitcoin registered a new high at $88,750 over the previous week’s top. However, as the chart exhibited, the price tested the upper Bollinger Band alongside the descending resistance. Additionally, BTC is also oscillating within an ascending channel.

Based on the above confluence, BTC could witness a short-term correction to test the demand zone around $86,000-$87,000 before breaking through the $90,000 threshold.

Related: Michael Saylor’s Strategy surpasses 500,000 Bitcoin with latest purchase

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.