Crypto Exchange Kraken Seeks European Banking License

Payward, the parent of crypto exchange Kraken, is building beyond trading and custody into deposits, payments, lending and asset management. Its U.S. unit, Kraken Financial, already holds a Wyoming special purpose depository institution charter and received a limited-purpose Federal Reserve master account on March 4, 2026. A full banking license abroad would broaden the group’s ability to take deposits and extend credit while putting it in more direct competition with conventional banks.

Payward is now evaluating jurisdictions outside the United States where it could seek a full banking license, though it has not selected a location or disclosed a timetable. Its longer-term ambitions could extend to mortgages alongside other lending and investment products. On August 14, Payward reported second-quarter adjusted revenue of $508 million, up 17% from a year earlier, with $40 billion of assets on platform and 6.6 million funded accounts, providing a sizable base for the proposed expansion.

Kraken Financial, the Wyoming-chartered banking arm of crypto exchange Kraken, applied for a Federal Reserve master account in October 2020. Such an account can allow an institution to settle dollars directly through Fedwire instead of relying on a correspondent bank. The approval therefore marked a breakthrough for digital-asset firms, which have historically struggled to gain direct access to the infrastructure underpinning the US banking system.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City approved Kraken Financial’s one-year, Fedwire-only account on March 4, 2026. Yet Chief Executive Brian Mathena told Wyoming lawmakers on July 15 that it remained offline more than four months later as the bank worked through technical certification and compliance controls. Kraken still lists Dart Bank as its US dollar wire provider, leaving the landmark approval without measurable commercial returns so far.

Kraken parent Payward is extending the exchange’s services into regulated banking infrastructure. Its Kraken Financial unit obtained a Wyoming SPDI charter in 2020 and, on March 4, 2026, won approval from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City for a limited-purpose, one-year master account that provides direct access to the Federal Reserve’s payment systems. A federal trust charter would add a qualified custody framework at the national level.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency received the application on May 8, 2026. If approved, Payward National Trust Company would be established to provide services including fiduciary custody of digital assets. The Independent Community Bankers of America asked the OCC on June 8 to reject the application, citing concerns over compliance, concentration and related-party transaction risks. Payward also plans to spend up to $550 million to acquire Bitnomial and $600 million to acquire Reap.