Overview
- Kraken launched USD‑settled BTC and ETH options via a request‑for‑quote system on July 16–17, making premiums, payouts and settlement all denominated in U.S. dollars.
- The initial rollout is limited to eligible institutional and professional clients outside Europe, North America and Australia and is being offered on Kraken Pro through RFQ execution.
- Options are integrated into Kraken’s unified account with portfolio margin enabled by default and support for posting collateral in more than 30 currencies to improve capital efficiency across spot, futures and options.
- Kraken says the design removes the need to hold crypto as margin, which lowers custody and settlement frictions that have kept many traditional finance firms from trading crypto options.
- The company plans to add a public order book, expand geographic access to Europe later in 2026, and list more assets as it builds a full‑stack derivatives platform after its Bitnomial acquisition and June U.S. perpetual futures launch.