Payward and clients buy undisclosed amount of AAVE

Kraken parent Payward and its clients acquired an undisclosed amount of AAVE on Nov. 5 through secondary-market purchases, according to Payward’s announcement. The deal puts the Aave governance token into an investment by Digital Asset Special Investments I, LP, a Payward-affiliated fund, and its clients.

Payward said it may make additional purchases and is exploring future collaboration with Aave, but gave no details on either. The amount and purchase price were not disclosed.

How did Payward acquire the AAVE?

The tokens were bought on the secondary market, meaning the announcement describes purchases of existing AAVE rather than a direct token sale by Aave. CoinDesk’s report on the acquisition also said the announcement gave no token count and did not mention an equity purchase.

Payward said the investment marks a step for its asset-management business, which offers clients exposure to digital assets, structured yield and tokenized financial instruments. Gurpreet Oberoi, Payward’s vice president of asset management and institutional, said the purchase reflected client demand for exposure to onchain credit markets and DeFi.

What does AAVE give holders?

AAVE holders can vote on the Aave network and its treasury, according to Payward. Aave is an onchain lending network where users lend and borrow digital assets; Payward’s announcement put its net deposits at $33 billion and active loans at $11 billion.

Aave Labs CEO Stani Kulechov said working with Payward could help bring Aave to more retail and institutional users. The announcement did not specify any planned product, timeline or terms for collaboration.

Sources

• Payward’s announcement — payward.com
• CoinDesk’s report on the acquisition — coindesk.com