Kraken took the decisive step towards expanding his footprint into active trading by acquiring Breakout, a unique trading company from crypto. The transaction is only marked when a first-class exchange integrates a “prop trading arm” directly into its ecosystem, potentially indicating a new wave of crypto-gammed trading products.
What a breakout brings
Breakout operates familiar models for Forex and futures traders. Participants will pay to enter the challenge or evaluation stage. If you meet your profit target without violating drawdown restrictions, and in the case of a breakout, you will unlock access to your funded account with an estimated capital of up to $200,000. Traders maintain a large portion of their profits, with splits reaching 90%.
Last week @pete_rizzo_
TL; DR👇
•Kraken gets a breakout
• Kaiko ranks Kraken as the top global exchange (3rd ’25)
•Tokenized stocks are coming to Ethereum via Xstocks pic.twitter.com/y7ujkloqqi-kraken (@krakenfx) September 5, 2025
Importantly, no deposit is required. The only upfront cost is the valuation fee, which is a low barrier entry point for ambitious traders who want to expand their strategy without putting personal capital at risk.
Related: Prop companies will evolve in 2025: adapting to new technology and trader needs
Breakout also distinguishes itself from the inherent flexibility of cryptographically specificity. Unlike many FX prop companies, they mainly trade news events backed by liquidity from the Tier-One exchange, providing a wide range of digital assets.
Why Kraken’s movements are different
Prop trading previously existed in crypto, but typically existed in the form of independent companies running outside the exchange ecosystem. By obtaining a breakout, Kraken is the first major global exchange to bring this model into the company.
The breakout was obtained by @krakenfxhttps://t.co/tp7x8lutat pic.twitter.com/j0rxj1vwxn
– Breakout (@breautProp) September 4, 2025
This has several meanings:
Seamless integration: Breakout gets caught up in Kraken Pro, and deals funded for existing users click.
In-facility polish: Kraken’s reputation for compliance and transparency could specialize in a niche that is often criticized for being too dependent on valuation fees.
Strategic Positioning: Following the previous acquisition of Ninjatrader, Kraken is clearly building a comprehensive suite for active traders, including tools, markets and current capital access.
Suitable for cryptography
On the surface, prop trading looks like a cradfi import. However, in many ways it is even more suitable for Crypto’s DNA.
Crypto traders are already immersed in the culture of leaderboards, challenges and public P&L flexion. The prop model adds a structured version of the same culture. Hit targets, prove your skills, and climb the rankings.
This structure also reflects the concept of “freeroll” in online poker. Traders pay a fixed fee to get into the challenge, but once funded, they are effectively trading with “home money.” Their downsides are concluded with admission fees, but their advantages are tied to performance.
Its asymmetric payoff profile is extremely attractive to typical retail crypto traders, value both risk control and big upside possibilities.
Beyond Cryptocurrency: Tokenized Assets on the Horizon
The timing of Kraken’s movements is remarkable. Once tokenized stocks, bonds, and real-world assets begin to move in chains, the range of equipment available in the prop program will only expand.
Breaking: Wall Street is officially on-chain.
XStocks is currently live by Kraken60 US stocks will be tokenized and traded 24/7. It’s coming soon.
We are not waiting for the future. We build it. https://t.co/iku44ziwzn
Not available in the US or the US. …pic.twitter.com/fjosxdj9se
-Kraken (@krakenfx) June 30, 2025
Imagine a stock where a trader competing for accounts with Bitcoin or Ethereum and Prop Trading funds has tokenized Apple, Tesla or S&P 500 basket stocks all within the same crypto native environment.
If the breakout model is successful with Kraken, it could serve as a blueprint for next-generation trading platforms: what crypto, tokenized stocks, and other digital assets converge, and where skill-based access to capital will replace traditional reliance on personal deposits.
In this regard, Kraken is not just buying prop companies. It places itself at the intersection of gamerized trading and tokenized markets.
Opportunities and risks
In the case of Kraken, the acquisition opens up new revenue streams: valuation fees, trading volumes from funded accounts, and potential synergies with the broader trading ecosystem. It also creates talented pipelines and surfaces skilled traders who may later be tapped for partnerships, market making or recruitment.
However, the challenge remains:
Regulation scrutiny: Prop companies face criticism in other markets because they overreliant on valuation fees. Kraken needs to demonstrate that breakouts provide meaningful funding opportunities and payments.
Execution model: Traders will want to clarify whether the funded account represents live trading on Kraken purchase orders or a simulated environment with internal risk management. Transparency here is important to trust.
User Education: Many retail crypto traders are new to prop-style programs. Kraken needs to be able to access the model without simplifying the risk.
Will others follow?
If successful, Kraken’s move could normalize prop trading across the industry. Competitors like Binance, Bybit and OKX are already fighting for trader engagement through gamerization campaigns and copy trading, but they can quickly follow acquisitions and in-house prop programs. Coinbase has a more conservative US regulatory stance, making it less likely to move first.
For now, Kraken has planted the flag. In an industry obsessed with gamification, capital access and performance-based status, breakouts give the exchange an attractive new way to attract and retain aspiring traders.
Read more: Kraken enters prop trading: Breakout acquisition offers funded accounts
The Kraken breakout acquisition is more than a product expansion. This is a signal that Prop Trading could become a mainstream fixture for Crypto.
By blending skill-based progression, gaming incentives and freeroll dynamics of cap risk, Kraken directly taps into the spirit of modern crypto traders.
From crypto tokens to blue chip equity, the possibilities for prop trading expand even more as more assets come chained. In the near future, traders may be able to compete for funded accounts not only on Bitcoin, but also on tokenized stocks and beyond.
