Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, reported a significant earnings decline in the third quarter. Adjusted EBITDA fell 67% to $60 million compared to $181 million in the third quarter of 2025.
Total platform margin (TPM), the company's primary revenue metric, declined 12% to $487 million. The company transitioned to TPM this quarter, a measure that deducts trading costs and staking rewards paid to clients. Under the previous adjusted revenue basis, third-quarter revenue fell 15% to $553 million from $650 million a year earlier.
Volume and Asset Decline
Total platform transaction volume fell 30% to $353 billion from $503 billion year-over-year. Average assets on the platform decreased 21% to $43 billion. However, Payward's share of industry spot trading volume increased to 6.5% in September from 3.3% a year prior, according to CoinMarketCap data.
Revenue Composition Shift
Non-trading revenue from client assets and access to products, data, and services increased to 52% of TPM, up from 46% a year earlier. The company reported 1.5 million billable accounts for these services, compared to 0.9 million previously. These accounts generate revenue from subscriptions, trader evaluations, and index licenses.
Capital and Banking Developments
Nasdaq agreed in September to invest $100 million in Payward at a $21 billion valuation. The company also plans to move US dollar wire transfers onto its own Federal Reserve master account through its banking arm, Kraken Financial, which became the first crypto company to obtain such an account.
