Bakkt appoints Akshay Naheta as co-CEO, leading to a 13% increase in shares, despite challenges from lost partnerships and regulatory delays.
By Parth Dubey
Updated
2 mins read
Bakkt, an American digital asset and custody firm, saw a significant transformation, bringing on Akshay Naheta as co-CEO.
The company also announced a strategic partnership with Naheta’s payments startup, Distributed Technologies Research (DTR).
Bakkt aims to reposition the company within the crypto payments and trading space after a challenging period marked by lost partnerships with Bank of America (BAC) and Webull Pay.
Naheta, a former SoftBank executive known for high-profile investments in Nvidia and ARM, will join current CEO Andy Main in leading Bakkt. His expertise in fintech and blockchain is expected to drive the company’s next growth phase.
A key element of the strategy is the integration of Bakkt’s trading and brokerage services with DTR’s stablecoin-based payments infrastructure.
DTR leverages blockchain APIs and a proprietary routing system to enhance payment efficiency, potentially unlocking new revenue streams in crypto trading and cross-border transactions.
It is important to note that these major changes are still not approved by proper regulatory authorities, a process which could delay implementation.
Earlier this week, Bakkt suffered a severe financial blow as both Bank of America and Webull Pay decided not to renew their commercial agreements with the company.
Notably, Bank of America accounted for 16% of Bakkt’s loyalty service revenue in 2023 and Webull Pay represented a massive 74% of the company’s crypto service revenue.
The Bank of America agreement ends on April 22, while Webull’s contract expires on June 14, leaving a significant revenue gap that Bakkt must fill through its new initiatives.
BKKT shares rose 13% pre-market, fueled by investor optimism around the leadership shakeup. However, technical indicators suggest a volatile trajectory.
The stock is trading near the lower Bollinger Band (BB), indicating oversold conditions and a potential mean reversion upwards. However, resistance at the mid-BB level (~$12.30) could cap short-term gains.
On the other hand, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is currently at 39, successfully avoiding an entry into the oversold territory. The gradient of the line suggests signs of recovery.
Despite today’s jump, Bakkt faces strong resistance at $12–$13, and sustaining gains will require tangible progress on its DTR integration and revenue diversification.
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A crypto journalist with over 5 years of experience in the industry, Parth has worked with major media outlets in the crypto and finance world, gathering experience and expertise in the space after surviving bear and bull markets over the years. Parth is also an author of 4 self-published books.