The Year of Mergers and Acquisitions: Ecosystem Restructuring and Power Reshuffling of Web3 Giants in 2025

Original author: KarenZ, Foresight News

2025 will be the year of acquisitions and takeovers for the giants.

Looking back at the acquisitions this year, the simple "big fish eat little fish" scenario is no longer sufficient to summarize the dramatic changes in the market.

From Coinbase's $2.9 billion acquisition of Deribit, to Stripe's $1.1 billion acquisition of stablecoin infrastructure company Bridge and wallet provider Privy, and then to Naver's "marriage of the century" with Upbit's parent company, acquisitions are no longer just about eliminating competitors, but about acquiring compliance licenses, filling business gaps, improving their own ecosystem, and connecting the "Ren and Du channels" of Web2 and Web3.

From the "full-stack" race among exchanges to the Web3 infrastructure grab by Web2 giants, from the land grab of new stablecoin infrastructure to the consolidation and reshuffling of vertical tracks, every transaction is reshaping the future direction of the crypto industry.

This article will review key acquisitions in the Web3 industry in 2025 and attempt to analyze the major trends behind the acquisition wave in 2025 through these capital moves.

The "Full-Stack" Competition Among Mainstream Exchanges

Coinbase: The Ambition to Build an "Exchange for Everything"

Coinbase's performance this year can be described as "merger and acquisition maniac," and its strategic intentions are exceptionally clear: to expand on-chain access externally and to make up for its shortcomings in derivatives internally.

• Seizing the Derivatives Throne : In August, Coinbase acquired Deribit for $2.9 billion (cash + stock). This was more than just a transaction; it was a power transition. By acquiring the undisputed leader in the options market, Coinbase instantly filled its biggest gap in professional trading, gaining the confidence to directly compete with other major exchanges in the derivatives arena.
• Closed-loop on-chain infrastructure : Whether it's acquiring Vector.fun from the Solana ecosystem, or taking over DeFi derivatives protocol Opyn, browser product Roam, and DeFi project Sensible, Coinbase is trying to make "on-chain operations" a "native experience" within its apps.
• Entering the ICO arena : Following its $375 million acquisition of Echo in October, Coinbase launched an end-to-end token sale platform, with its first sale being Monad. The company plans to hold monthly token sales in the future. This move signifies Coinbase's evolution into a primary market fundraising platform.
• Privacy protection : Privacy protection has also been incorporated into Coinbase's strategy. In March, Base announced the acquisition of the Iron Fish development team to develop privacy primitives for Base.
• Content and Advertising : From acquiring Spindl (ad technology) to Up Only NFT (content podcasts), Coinbase is building a self-sufficient traffic ecosystem, no longer relying on external funding.

It's clear that Coinbase is evolving from an "exchange" to an "exchange for everything." Whether it's derivatives, spot trading, stablecoin issuance, token sales, or on-chain applications, everything points to the same goal: to become a "super app" in the Web3 world, allowing users to fulfill all their needs from investment to consumption within the Coinbase ecosystem.

Robinhood, Kraken, Binance, and Backpack

Other major exchanges have not stopped there either, expanding their global footprint and asset classes through mergers and acquisitions.

• Robinhood's global expansion : The completion of the $200 million acquisition of Bitstamp in June and the $179 million acquisition of WonderFi in Canada in May mark Robinhood's complete shedding of its "US retail investor stronghold" label and its geographical expansion through compliance licenses.
• Kraken's Reverse Crossover : Its most ambitious crossover move was the $1.5 billion acquisition of US retail futures trading platform NinjaTrader. Kraken is no longer content with just crypto asset trading; it aims to become a comprehensive trading platform spanning TradeFi and Crypto, with future plans to introduce stocks, prediction markets, and options. Simultaneously, Kraken acquired the CFTC-regulated designated contract market Small Exchange from IG Group for $100 million, and acquired the assets of Israeli no-code trading company Capitalise.ai, its proprietary trading platform Breakout. Furthermore, it obtained a MiFID license through the acquisition of a Cyprus investment company, authorizing it to offer derivatives products in the EU.
• Binance : Binance has gradually mitigated regulatory pressure by acquiring South Korea's Gopax, introducing a $2 billion investment from MGX, and having SoftBank Group subsidiary PayPay acquire a 40% stake in Binance Japan. It has also obtained full regulatory authorization from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) and strengthened its position in the Asia-Pacific market.
• Backpack : In April, it completed the acquisition of FTX EU and launched a suite of derivative products focused on the European Union.
• IG Group : UK-based online trading platform IG Group has acquired Australian cryptocurrency exchange Independent Reserve for $117.41 million, expanding its digital offerings and presence in the Asia-Pacific region.

Payments and Stablecoins: The Battle of Financial Giants for "New Infrastructure"

Stablecoins are at a critical turning point, transitioning from an internal tool to a means of "commercial payment." Web2 payment giants and traditional financial institutions are no longer standing by and watching, but are directly entering the fray through mergers and acquisitions to seize the right to mint coins and the circulation network.

Stripe: A Silicon Valley Giant's "Stablecoin Plot"

Stripe's $1.1 billion acquisition of Bridge was a landmark event of the year. Bridge's pending application for a banking trust license, coupled with Stripe's vast merchant network, signifies that Stripe aims to be more than just a payment gateway; it aspires to become the "central bank" between fiat currency and cryptocurrency. Simultaneously, Stripe's acquisition of wallet service provider Privy reveals its ambition to control the Web3 user gateway and seamlessly integrate hundreds of millions of users into the ecosystem.

Mastercard: Attempting to directly control the underlying cryptographic settlement mechanism

Mastercard is in talks to acquire cryptocurrency and stablecoin infrastructure startup Zerohash for $1.5 billion to $2 billion, demonstrating that traditional card organizations are unwilling to become mere conduits and are trying to directly control the underlying crypto settlement infrastructure.

Ripple: Expanding its presence as a commodity broker and in the stablecoin ecosystem

Ripple transformed itself from a single payment network into a comprehensive financial services provider encompassing institutional lending, stablecoin issuance, and corporate treasury management through its acquisitions of prime brokerage Hidden Road (now Ripple Prime) for $1.25 billion, stablecoin payment platform Rail for $200 million, and global treasury management system GTreasury for $1 billion. This acquisition provides strong support for the launch of the RLUSD stablecoin.

Paxos & Circle: DeFi Connectivity + Compliance Moat

Circle acquired tokenization company Hashnote for over $120 million, and Paxos acquired institutional custody and wallet technology providers Fordefi and Membrane Finance. These established stablecoin issuers are strengthening their capabilities in DeFi connectivity and European compliance (MiCA) through mergers and acquisitions to counter competition from payment giants.

The entry of internet giants and real-world industries

When South Korean internet giant Naver "swallowed" Upbit's parent company Dunamu through a stock swap, we witnessed the ultimate form of Web3 mergers and acquisitions: the complete integration of traffic, payments, AI, and crypto.

• Naver + Dunamu : This is a perfect complement. Naver controls traffic gateways and payment networks, while Dunamu's subsidiary Upbit is South Korea's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Their joint $6.8 billion investment plan in AI and blockchain aims to build a new generation of financial infrastructure based on AI and blockchain technologies.
• Rumble + Northern Data : The acquisition of Northern Data, a Bitcoin mining company, by video platform Rumble appears to be a battle for computing power, but in reality, it's Tether (as its major shareholder) using crypto capital to support AI infrastructure. This signifies that crypto capital is beginning to "move from the virtual to the real," vying for pricing power in the AI era.

Business expansion and the "big fish eat small fish" phenomenon in vertical industries.

Off-the-ground, mergers and acquisitions in the infrastructure and prediction market sectors are equally turbulent.

• Aggregation at the infrastructure layer : Chainalysis's acquisition of AI fraud detection company Alterya and Talos's acquisition of Coin Metrics indicate that institutional investors no longer need simple data, but rather "intelligent intelligence" that has been cleaned by AI and can be used for risk control and trading decisions.
• Mining computing power and energy integration : MARA acquired a 64% stake in Exaion, a subsidiary of integrated energy operator EDF Group, for $168 million; Riot acquired Rhodium assets for a total price of $185 million; and Bitfarms completed an all-stock acquisition of Stronghold Digital Mining for over $110 million.
• LayerZero's cross-chain integration : In August, the cross-chain asset transfer protocol LayerZero acquired Stargate for approximately $110 million, further integrating cross-chain liquidity.
• Polymarket's US Expansion : Polymarket's $112 million acquisition of QCX, approved by the CFTC, marks Polymarket's transition from the "gray area" to a regulated and legitimate derivatives market in the United States.

Several trends behind the 2025 acquisition boom

By analyzing the dozens of transactions mentioned above, we can clearly see the logic behind the acquisition boom of 2025:

The "Full-Stack" Evolution of Exchanges

As the gateway to the crypto industry, the mergers and acquisitions of exchanges directly determine the market landscape. In 2025, the M&A strategies of leading exchanges exhibited a dual characteristic of "horizontal expansion + vertical integration".

Coinbase has launched multiple acquisitions, no longer content with spot trading, but instead using acquisitions to fill gaps in various aspects such as derivatives, on-chain trading, DeFi, new offerings, and privacy. Kraken's acquisition of Bitstamp and its reverse takeover of NinjaTrader also illustrate that giants are building "moats" through a full-stack strategy.

Compliance licenses have become a core target for mergers and acquisitions.

The era of regulatory arbitrage is over; compliance qualifications have become the entry ticket. Coinbase's acquisition of the Cyprus CIF license, Kraken's acquisition of the MiFID license, and Paxos' acquisition of Membrane to obtain an EU electronic money license all demonstrate the strategic logic of "license first." In particular, the strict restrictions imposed on stablecoin issuers by the US GENIUS Act have significantly increased the value of assets with banking licenses or trust qualifications.

Buy technology, not build technology

Coinbase's acquisition of Deribit not only gained market share but also incorporated its derivatives pricing and risk control technologies; LayerZero's $110 million acquisition of Stargate quickly strengthened its cross-chain transfer capabilities; and wallet company Exodus's acquisition of Baanx and Monavate directly provided access to payment card infrastructure. This strategy of "buying technology rather than building technology" significantly shortens product iteration cycles.

Institutionalization drives infrastructure demand

The institutionalization of the crypto market is accelerating, driving a surge in infrastructure mergers and acquisitions. Ripple acquired Hidden Road to meet the large-scale brokerage needs of institutional clients, and its business tripled after the acquisition; Talos acquired Coin Metrics to provide more comprehensive trading data support for hedge funds and other institutions; Paxos acquired Fordefi to address the security and custody pain points for institutions entering DeFi. The influx of institutional funds has increasingly highlighted the value of specialized infrastructure.

Conclusion

The crypto M&A wave in 2025 is the result of the collision of multiple forces: the expansion of giants, regulatory approval, the entry of traditional finance, and the maturity of technology.

This year, we have witnessed the "full-stack" evolution of exchanges, the view of stablecoins by payment companies and financial infrastructure providers as the next generation of infrastructure, the entry of internet giants into the Crypto field or the beginning of treating Crypto as a mainstream business, and the emergence of computing power and AI as new battlegrounds.

However, we also need to recognize that expanding the scale of mergers and acquisitions does not equate to solving industry problems. The key to the future lies not in "what to buy," but in "how to integrate"—how to integrate acquired assets into a truly synergistic ecosystem, how to maintain innovation while meeting regulatory requirements, and how to protect market diversity amidst the trend of centralization.

The wave of mergers and acquisitions in 2025 has only just begun, and its true impact will gradually become apparent over the next few years. But one thing is certain: the consolidation of the crypto industry into giants and the development of its ecosystem is irreversible.