Online trading major IG Group Holdings plc (LON:IGG) announced today that it has completed the sale of Small Exchange Inc to Payward Inc, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken.
The transaction values Small Exchange at $100.0m (£74.9m), with the consideration comprising $32.5m (£24.3m) in cash and $67.5m (£50.6m) in Payward shares. The sale results in a gain of £73.3m after tax and increases the Group’s regulatory capital resources by £22.7m.
Under the terms of the deal, IG will enter into a partnership agreement with Kraken that includes the distribution of the new exchange’s products.
Breon Corcoran, CEO of IG Group said:
“The transaction represents a significant return from the Group’s acquisition of Small Exchange and enables us to partner with Kraken to distribute new crypto products.”
The transaction builds on recent momentum in the Group’s crypto strategy.
In September 2025, IG announced the acquisition of Independent Reserve, an Australian-based crypto exchange. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and remains on track to close in early 2026.
Last month, IG also received a crypto asset license from the Financial Conduct Authority, allowing the Group to significantly expand its crypto offering to UK customers.
Earlier in FY26, IG participated in a new round of funding in Zero Hash Holdings LLC, a market infrastructure provider for cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and tokenized assets, leaving it with an 8.1% stake. This was one of the largest private market raises in the cryptocurrency and stablecoin sector in 2025 and values zeroash at around $1 billion.