Kraken has agreed to buy retail futures trading platform NinjaTrader in a deal worth $1.5 billion.

According to the cryptocurrency firm, the transaction will be the largest-ever deal combining traditional finance and crypto.

It said that the move would see it become a leader in US futures for both traditional and crypto markets.

The buyout is also excepted to speed up the company's multi-asset-class ambitions, which include plans for equities trading and payments.

Founded in 2003, NinjaTrader provides advanced futures trading tools to nearly two million traders and operates as a CFTC-registered Futures Commission Merchant.

The deal is expected to close in the first half of the year.

“Traditional markets run on banking systems from the 1950s and post-WWII, exchanges that close at four pm ET, and settlement delays that take days to resolve," said Arjun Sethi, co-chief executive of Kraken. "Crypto rails fixed these issues, operating with efficient and real-time infrastructure."

He went on to say that, until now, legacy finance and crypto have remained separate ecosystems

"This transaction is the first step in our vision of an institutional-grade trading platform where any asset can be traded, anytime," continued Sethi.

Kraken has previously integrated with real-time analytics firm Cryptowatch; regulated derivatives business Crypto Facilities; index provider CF Benchmarks; and staking infrastructure Staked.

“NinjaTrader’s mission has been to redefine retail futures trading, making it more accessible, cost-effective and trader-friendly," said Marty Franchi, chief executive of NinjaTrader. "Joining forces with Kraken allows us to take this vision to a global scale, expanding our reach and unlocking innovative new use cases.

"Together, Kraken and NinjaTrader will power the integration of traditional markets with crypto by offering cutting edge tools and the ability to rapidly move across asset classes that the most sophisticated traders demand.”

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