Crypto Currents: Kraken eyes IPO as ethereum targets $5,000 breakout

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KRAKEN EYES IPO AMID STRONG Q2 GROWTH: Payward Inc., doing business as ‘Kraken’, is reportedly seeking to raise $500M in a funding round that would value the company at $15B, as it gears up for a potential 2026 public offering. According to a report from The Information, the fundraising effort comes as the company demonstrates strong growth, recently announcing that its Q2 revenue increased 18% year-over-year to $412M. The exchange’s total quarterly trading volume rose 19% to $186.8B, while its number of funded accounts grew 37% to 4.4M. “We are not just riding the cycle, we are absorbing more share,” said Arjun Sethi, Kraken’s co-CEO “We are gaining share across the board.” The potential IPO, which Bloomberg reported in March could happen as early as Q1 2026, comes amid a recent boom for public crypto-related companies like Circle (CRCL) and eToro (ETOR), as well as a more favorable regulatory environment, highlighted by the SEC dropping its securities violation lawsuit against Kraken in March.

DOJ CLARIFIES IT IS NOT PROBING DRAGONFLY: In a post on X, Haseeb Qureshi, co-founder of Dragonfly Ventures, said that the U.S. Department of Justice is not investigating the venture firm over its past investment in Tornado Cash. The DOJ reportedly revealed during a Monday trial that it is not targeting Dragonfly in its investigation. Qureshi stated that the DOJ “backtracked” and said on the record that “media reports that they were planning to bring charges against Dragonfly were inaccurate, and neither Dragonfly nor any of its principals are targets in their investigation.” The clarification follows a Friday report where DOJ prosecutors suggested the agency might pursue charges against Dragonfly for its 2020 investment in Tornado Cash developer PepperSec, Inc.

ANALYSTS SEE PATH TO $5,000 FOR ETHEREUM: Analysts are pointing to supportive market conditions that could accelerate ethereum’s (ETH) climb toward $5,000, as the token defies bitcoin’s (BTC) recent pullback. Market watchers cite growing U.S. spot ethereum ETF inflows, which have logged 18 straight days of inflows totaling $5.51B since July 3rd, the potential approval of staking within those ETFs, and increasing institutional buying as key drivers. Analyst Daniel Liu, CEO of Republic Technologies, told Decrypt that while the market could see “range-bound movement in the near term,” conditions are primed for a “short squeeze” that could push “ethereum past $5,000 in the coming month,” catalyzed by favorable macroeconomic headlines. Options activity also signals growing expectations of a $6,000 price target by year’s end.

OTHER CRYPTO NEWS:

• JPMorgan and Coinbase to link accounts: JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Coinbase Global (COIN) signed an agreement to directly link customers’ bank accounts to their cryptocurrency wallets, with the connection expected to go live next year. Customers will also be able to fund Coinbase accounts with their Chase credit cards this fall.
• Visa sees modest stablecoin uptake: Visa (V) reported it has processed over $200M in stablecoin settlements but said the technology is still in its infancy. CEO Ryan McInerney stated that global stablecoin adoption remains limited and called for clearer regulatory frameworks in the U.S. and abroad before the technology can scale further.
• Hong Kong implements new stablecoin rules: The Hong Kong Monetary Authority will implement its new framework for stablecoins starting Friday, introducing a six-month transition period for issuers. Firms that fail to comply with the new rules within three months will be required to wind down their operations.
• AML Bitcoin Founder Sentenced: Rowland Marcus Andrade, the founder of a crypto token called AML Bitcoin, was sentenced to seven years in prison for wire fraud and money laundering after being found guilty of defrauding investors out of $10M.

PRICE ACTION: As of time of writing, bitcoin was trading at $117,810.00 while ethereum was trading at $3,780.33.