Kraken’s NFT Marketplace to Allow NFT-Collateralized Loans

The NFT space processes more than $10 billion in trading volume per quarter, with the recent growth attracting numerous companies to the emerging sector. An increasing number of cryptocurrency exchanges are launching their NFT marketplaces.

Kraken Joins Binance, FTX and Coinbase in Launching an NFT marketplace

Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken is set to launch its nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace. However, the CEO has revealed that Kraken’s NFT marketplace will differ from others as it would allow users to leverage their NFTs to gain access to other services.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Jesse Powell said, “If you deposit a CryptoPunk on Kraken, we want to be able to reflect the value of that in your account. And if you want to borrow funds against that.”

Powell believes that the NFT space is still in its early days, and the utility of the NFTs will be the major focus next year. “Phase one was speculation, phase two is buying art and supporting artists, phase three is going to be functional uses of NFTs,” he added.

NFT-backed loans are becoming popular within the cryptocurrency space. However, most of the services are offered by DeFi platforms, such as Arcade and Nexo, and Kraken is set to become the first centralized crypto exchange to adopt this model.

Kraken recently acquired Staked, a platform that provides non-custodial cryptocurrency staking services. The acquisition would allow Kraken to attract new investors and expand the use-case of its NFT platform.

Crypto Platforms are Expanding their Financial Services

The emergence of the DeFi space has made it easier for people to gain access to some traditional financial services. By enabling people to use their NFTs as collateral to access loans, crypto companies are providing more traditional financial services in a decentralized manner.

Kraken is one of the leading crypto exchanges in the world, and it has been expanding its services in recent months. Last week, Kraken listed AVAX, the native token of the Avalanche blockchain. The exchange also listed Shiba Inu and LUNA, Terra’s native token, in recent weeks.