Kraken Becomes First Crypto Platform on ICE Chat, Targeting 120,000 Users
Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has integrated its over-the-counter (OTC) desk with the Intercontinental Exchange’s (ICE) Chat network, becoming the first crypto platform approved for the service. The integration provides more than 120,000 institutional market participants—including banks, brokers, and trading desks—with direct communication and execution capabilities with Kraken's liquidity pools. This allows established financial players to trade large blocks of crypto assets without leaving their existing, widely-used messaging and workflow systems.
By embedding crypto trading into traditional financial infrastructure, the partnership aims to reduce friction for institutional adoption and improve liquidity for large-scale digital asset transactions. The move places Kraken's spot and options liquidity alongside traditional asset classes on a platform operated by ICE, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
ICE Accelerates Digital Asset Strategy with $2B Polymarket Investment
The Kraken integration is the latest in a series of strategic moves by Intercontinental Exchange to expand its footprint in the digital asset market. This push extends beyond simple connectivity and into direct investment and data services. In October, ICE invested $2 billion in the crypto-based prediction market Polymarket, securing a reported $9 billion valuation for the platform. This was followed by discussions in December to back crypto payments firm MoonPay in a funding round targeting a $5 billion valuation.
Furthermore, ICE partnered with blockchain oracle provider Chainlink in August to deliver its foreign exchange and precious metals pricing data on-chain. By integrating its Consolidated Feed, which aggregates data from over 300 global exchanges, ICE is actively building the infrastructure to support more complex blockchain-based financial products.
NYSE and Nasdaq Pursue Tokenized Stock Trading
The convergence of traditional and crypto markets is a sector-wide trend, with major exchange operators actively developing their own digital asset capabilities. In January, the NYSE announced its own plans to build a 24/7 trading platform for tokenized stocks and ETFs, leveraging its existing Pillar matching engine with blockchain settlement systems. This followed a September filing from Nasdaq, which requested a rule change from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to enable the listing and trading of tokenized stocks. These initiatives signal a competitive race among the world's largest exchanges to build the foundational infrastructure for the next generation of financial assets.
Edgen Crypto·Feb 17 2026, 20:03