Jesse Powell is the co-founder and chairman of Kraken, one of many longest-running cryptocurrency exchanges. In keeping with CoinDesk, its mum or dad firm, Payward, has been valued at between $13 billion and $20 billion because it prepares for a doable US IPO. Powell stepped down as CEO in September 2022 and stays the corporate’s largest particular person shareholder, CoinDesk reported. He has additionally been a vocal critic of cryptocurrency regulation, based on CNBC.
Who Is Jesse Powell?
Public profiles place Powell’s delivery in Sacramento, California, within the late Seventies, although neither Kraken’s supplies nor his listing entry on CryptoSlate lists a selected date. His schooling is documented: philosophy with a focus in ethics and legislation at California State College, Sacramento.
Earlier than crypto, Powell spent a decade in on-line gaming, co-founding Lewt, Inc. in 2001 to promote digital foreign money and gadgets to on-line sport gamers, and operating it as CEO till 2011, alongside a second enterprise, Web Ventures & Holdings (2006-2011), based on CryptoSlate.
The turning level got here that very same yr, when Powell traveled to assist Mt. Gox recuperate from a hacking incident. In keeping with The Block, what he noticed satisfied him the trade’s safety couldn’t be trusted, and its 2014 collapse proved the priority justified.
Jesse Powell’s Profession and Contributions
In keeping with The Block, Powell traveled to assist Mt. Gox recuperate from a hacking incident in 2011, and what he discovered satisfied him the trade’s safety couldn’t be trusted. Mt. Gox’s collapse in 2014 later validated that evaluation.
Powell co-founded Kraken in San Francisco that very same yr with Thanh Luu and Michael Gronager, a founding story advised alongside different trade leaders on our crypto personalities web page, and the trade launched in 2013 positioning itself as a safer various, based on The Block.
In September 2020, Kraken grew to become the primary cryptocurrency firm to obtain a US financial institution constitution, after Wyoming accepted its depository establishment software, CoinDesk reported. In September 2022, Powell stepped down as CEO after eleven years, handing the function to COO Dave Ripley and turning into chairman and Kraken’s largest shareholder, based on CoinDesk.
The chairman years have stayed energetic. Kraken settled with the SEC in 2023 over its staking program for $30 million, earlier than the regulator dropped a broader lawsuit in March 2025 amid a wider retreat from crypto enforcement, CoinDesk reported.
That cleared the way in which for Payward’s confidential US IPO submitting in November 2025, at a reported $20 billion valuation that slipped to $13.3 billion by April 2026, based on CoinDesk. Payward continued increasing, closing a $1.5 billion NinjaTrader deal and chopping 150 jobs in Might 2026 to streamline for a list, CoinDesk reported.
Jesse Powell’s Views and Positions
Powell has lengthy argued that heavy-handed guidelines threaten the explanation Bitcoin and crypto exist. Talking with CNBC in April 2021, he mentioned, “I believe there might be some crackdown,” warning {that a} proposed rule requiring id checks on pockets transfers above $3,000 may undercut crypto’s promise of accessible finance.
That skepticism carried into how he ran Kraken. By his personal account, he considered the 2022 inner tradition doc, which set out libertarian-leaning office values and supplied severance to staff who disagreed, as one of many defining moments of his tenure.
Jesse Powell within the Information
In July 2025, federal prosecutors closed a two-year prison investigation into Powell with out submitting fees, ending a case that started after the Verge Middle for the Arts, a Sacramento nonprofit he had co-founded and later left, accused him of hacking its pc methods.
The FBI had searched Powell’s Los Angeles residence in 2023 and seized units as a part of the probe. In keeping with CoinDesk, his lawyer confirmed the case closed that April, with the units returned. Powell referred to as the raid “devastating each personally and professionally” and has since sued Verge’s board over what he calls false statements to investigators.
Incessantly Requested Questions
Want a refresher on Jesse Powell? Listed below are the questions readers most frequently ask about him.
What corporations did Jesse Powell discovered earlier than Kraken?
Powell co-founded Lewt, Inc. in 2001, which bought digital foreign money and gadgets to on-line sport gamers, operating it as CEO for a decade. He additionally led Web Ventures & Holdings from 2006 to 2011.
Did the FBI cost Jesse Powell with against the law?
No. Federal prosecutors closed a two-year investigation in April 2025 with out submitting fees, following allegations that he had hacked the Verge Middle for the Arts’s pc methods. Powell denies the allegations and is suing the nonprofit’s board.
Is Jesse Powell nonetheless Kraken’s chairman in 2026?
Sure. Powell stepped down as CEO in September 2022 however stays chairman and Kraken’s largest shareholder as Payward, Inc. strikes towards a deliberate itemizing.
Is Kraken nonetheless planning an IPO in 2026?
As of mid-2026, Payward has a confidential S-1 submitting with the SEC, submitted in November 2025, and continues to be making ready to checklist regardless of its valuation dropping from $20 billion to $13.3 billion earlier within the yr.