Kraken Said to Seek Partner to Help Build It a Layer 2 Blockchain Network

Kraken, the big U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, is considering several of the leading blockchain-technology firms to help launch its own layer 2 network, people familiar with the matter told CoinDesk.

Such a move would bring Kraken in line with the move earlier this year by rival Coinbase to launch its own layer-2 network.

Kraken is considering Polygon, Matter Labs and Nil Foundation among others about using their technology as the basis for the new network, according to the sources, who asked not to be named because the effort was not publicly disclosed and the conversations are still fluid. There may also be other teams in the discussions.

“We’re always looking to identify and solve for new industry challenges and opportunities," a Kraken spokesperson told CoinDesk. "We don’t have anything further to share at this time.”

Major crypto companies with established brands and customer followings have been seeking to grow their presence as blockchain builders, either as a potential source of new revenue or simply as an extension of their current operations.

In August, crypto exchange Coinbase released its own layer 2 network, Base, which makes use of the OP Stack, from the OP Labs team that built Optimism, the second-biggest layer-2 network atop the Ethereum blockchain.

Polygon, a leading developer of Ethereum scaling solutions with its Polygon PoS network and more recently the Polygon zkEVM, earlier this year came out with a new software toolkit that developers can use to spin up their own blockchains. Matter Labs, the developer behind the zkSync layer-2 network, also offers its technology to upstart builders.

Kraken recently added a job posting on the careers section of its website, advertising for a "Senior Cryptography Engineer" with "knowledge of modern cryptography (including ZK proofs)" whose opportunities could include "design and implementation of layer-2 solutions."

"We are enthusiastic about open source, layer-2 technologies, zero-knowledge proofs, multi-party computation, and continuously strive to explore the potential of on-chain scaling solutions," the job description reads. "The team has recently embarked on exploring how more protocols and decentralized applications can be integrated into Kraken."

With reporting by Elizabeth Napolitano.