Kraken Could Become Hyperliquid’s U.S. Gateway

Hyperliquid is reportedly in advanced talks with Kraken parent Payward to bring regulated Hyperliquid-linked perpetuals to U.S. traders.

What’s the Scoop?

• U.S. Access Talks: Hyperliquid Labs is reportedly in advanced talks with Payward to bring Hyperliquid-linked perpetual futures to U.S. users through Bitnomial, Payward’s CFTC-regulated derivatives exchange. Payward has already presented the proposed structure to the CFTC, though approval remains pending.
• Kraken Was Already Testing: The report follows recent testnet activity (identified by Blockworks) from a deployer named “Kraken HIP-3 test DEX,” which tested Hyperliquid’s new permissioning and account-control features designed for compliant deployments.
• Regulated Wrapper: Bitnomial already operates regulated exchange, clearing, and brokerage entities, potentially allowing it to handle KYC and compliance while HyperCore remains the underlying infrastructure. This closely matches the approach Hyperliquid’s Policy Center has advocated for bringing the protocol onshore without turning Hyperliquid itself into a traditional U.S. exchange.
• Existing Payward Ties: Payward already has exposure to HyperCore through xStocks’ recent integration. Combined with the Kraken-branded testnet deployment and the newly reported talks, Kraken increasingly looks like a leading candidate to become Hyperliquid’s first major regulated U.S. access point, though no HIP-3 deployment has been officially confirmed.