According to online reports, according to people familiar with the matter, Apollo Global Management, Oppenheimer, Jane Street and HSG, formerly known as Sequoia Capital China, all participated in the latest round of financing from crypto exchange Kraken. The round valued Kraken at US$15 billion. Fortune magazine reported last month that Kraken had raised $500 million, but Reuters disclosed the identities of these major investors and financial industry participants for the first time. A source said Qube Research & Technologies, Kraken's co-CEO Arjun Sethi, and Sethi co-founded venture capital firm Tribe Capital also participated in the round, paving the way for Kraken to go public in the next few months. Kraken is expected to secretly file a registration statement for an initial public offering (IPO) with the U.S. SEC before the end of the year and plans to go public in the first quarter of next year. One of the sources added that it is unclear how the U.S. government shutdown may affect this timetable. (Reuters)