Nakamoto Adds Bitcoin Derivatives to $60M Kraken Loan

By Nathan Brooks

Nakamoto extended its $60 million loan from Kraken and will count the net value of its Bitcoin derivatives positions in the pledged Kraken trading account as collateral, subject to limits. The Bitcoin treasury company disclosed the amendment, adding a non-coin asset to the collateral package supporting the facility.

What does the amendment change for Nakamoto?

The company previously relied on Bitcoin pledged to Kraken. The amendment adds the net value of derivatives positions already held in the same pledged account, so the collateral calculation can include both the pledged coins and the trading book rather than relying only on BTC.

Net value means gains and losses within the derivatives book combine before they enter the collateral calculation. Only a positive net value adds support, and the amendment sets limits on how much the derivatives can contribute.

Tyler Evans, Nakamoto’s chief investment officer, said:

“This amendment extends our runway and makes our collateral position more resilient. It gives us more flexibility to manage through Bitcoin price volatility ... so we can put our full attention on what we control: building our operating businesses and managing our Bitcoin holdings ... so that we can continue to grow through this market cycle. We are grateful to Kraken for being a supportive financing partner.”

Evans framed the change as a way to extend runway and reduce pressure from Bitcoin volatility. In practical terms, Nakamoto gains more collateral flexibility without selling additional Bitcoin at the time of the amendment.

For lenders, the calculation now spans two asset types rather than one. For Nakamoto, the pledged coin inventory remains central, but it no longer has to carry the entire collateral burden.

Debt reduction before the amendment

Nakamoto initially borrowed $210 million in December 2025. It reduced that balance by $45 million in June, leaving $165 million owed to Kraken.

The company also raised roughly $48 million by selling Bitcoin and derivatives, then used most of those proceeds to bring down the debt. The repayment strategy lowered the loan balance while drawing on assets held to manage the treasury.

The $45 million reduction was funded largely by asset sales, which also reduced the assets available to back the facility. Evans said the company would continue building its operating businesses and managing its Bitcoin holdings while using the financing to manage through the market cycle.

Collateral coverage after the price decline

By the end of September, Nakamoto had pledged 3,030 of its 4,283 BTC holdings to Kraken, according to its latest quarterly report. The pledge covered roughly 71% of the company’s Bitcoin inventory.

At the then-current price near $83,500 per BTC, those pledged coins carried a value of around $253 million. At the reported current price of $69,334, their value fell to roughly $210 million.

The decline erased about $43 million in collateral value, or 17% of the earlier valuation, without a change in the number of pledged coins. It also narrowed the cushion available to Nakamoto if the loan came under pressure.

Even so, the pledged BTC alone covered about 127% of the $165 million outstanding, leaving a nominal excess of roughly $45 million. That coverage excludes any additional contribution from the derivatives positions now permitted under the amendment.

Only a positive net derivatives value can expand that buffer, and the amendment’s limits restrict the size of the addition. A fall in Bitcoin, or a weaker derivatives book, would narrow the support available to Kraken.

The next quarterly report is the practical checkpoint for whether the broader collateral structure preserves that buffer as Bitcoin moves, while the amendment’s limits determine how much derivatives value can count.