Kraken is pushing hard for full-fledged bank status, armed with a Federal Reserve master account and a planned 2027 IPO. The crypto platform is betting on payments, lending, and custody to compete with traditional financial institutions.
🔑 Key takeaways
- Kraken aims to become a full bank in several jurisdictions, starting outside the US
- Kraken Financial secured a Federal Reserve master account in March 2026, a first for a digital-asset bank
- 2025 revenue: $2.2B; valuation reached $20B in November
- Major acquisitions: NinjaTrader ($1.5B) and Reap ($600M) to build a complete financial stack
- IPO filed with the SEC, targeting 2027
A diversification strategy built on three business lines
At the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium 2026, Dave Ripley, co-CEO of Payward (Kraken’s parent company) and Kraken, confirmed the platform’s banking ambitions. « We do look to become a full bank in some of our other geographies, probably not the US immediately, » he told The Block.
He outlined the four pillars of the banking sector Payward intends to cover: payments and money movement, lending, yields, and asset custody. « It’s payments and money movement. It’s lending. It’s yields. It’s custody of assets. We do those four things. »
Payward now organizes its development around three business lines: trading, banking services, and asset management. Mark Greenberg, chief commercial officer, floated the idea of eventually offering mortgage credit, though no product or timeline has been announced. The main goal is to reduce fragmentation between financial services: a client could theoretically hold assets, make payments, invest, and borrow from a single infrastructure, subject to local licensing.
Kraken Financial: Wyoming SPDI and Fed master account
Payward already controls Kraken Financial, a Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) chartered in Wyoming in 2020 and commercially launched in March 2024. The subsidiary offers fiat accounts and regulated digital-asset custody to selected institutional and private clients.
Its model differs from a traditional bank: deposits are not FDIC-insured (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the US federal deposit insurance agency) and must remain backed at 100 % by cash or highly liquid assets. Kraken Financial cannot use client deposits to extend loans, unlike a commercial bank.
In March 2026, Kraken Financial secured a master account at the Federal Reserve, becoming the first digital-asset bank in US history to gain direct access to the central bank’s payment infrastructure. The direct connection to Fedwire (the Federal Reserve’s real-time gross settlement system) cuts reliance on correspondent banks and accelerates fiat transfers for institutional clients.
« This milestone marks the convergence of crypto infrastructure and sovereign financial rails. With a Federal Reserve master account, we can operate not as a peripheral participant in the US banking system, but as a financial institution directly connected. »
Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Payward and Kraken
The account was approved for an initial one-year term, with services being rolled out gradually and institutional clients prioritized. Jeff Schmid, president of the Kansas City Fed, stated: « Throughout this transformation, the integrity and stability of the US payment system remain our priority. »
Kraken remains limited to SPDI functions and does not yet enjoy the full range of privileges granted to banks holding a full master account. Payward has also filed for a national trust charter with the OCC (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency), primarily aimed at digital-asset custody rather than a complete banking license.
Financial performance and capital base
Kraken generated $2.2 billion in revenue in 2025, according to L’Agefi. In Q2 2026, the platform posted $508 million in revenue, up 17 % year-on-year. However, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) fell to $23 million, down from $80 million a year earlier — a significant decline that reflects margin pressure amid heightened competition.
In April, the company had reached a $13.3 billion valuation following Deutsche Börse’s $200 million equity investment. In November, Kraken was valued at $20 billion in its latest funding round, according to Boursorama.
| Metric | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.2B | FY 2025 |
| Q2 revenue | $508M (+17% YoY) | Q2 2026 |
| Q2 EBITDA | $23M (vs $80M a year earlier) | Q2 2026 |
| Valuation (April) | $13.3B | April 2026 |
| Valuation (November) | $20B | November 2025 |
| Headcount | 2,700 | 2026 |
Acquisitions and white-label infrastructure
Growth is driven by targeted acquisitions. In 2025, Kraken acquired NinjaTrader, a futures specialist broker, for $1.5 billion. In early May 2026, the fintech bought Reap, a payments company focused on stablecoins and card payment infrastructure, for $600 million.
Dave Ripley explained the logic: « We want to offer different products to our users and integrate the infrastructure of acquired companies directly into Kraken. » Kraken also launched xStocks, tokenized representations of US stocks and ETFs (exchange-traded funds). In less than a year, cumulative trading volume surpassed $30 billion.
The platform holds more than 100 licenses and registrations, including the MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets, the EU crypto regulation) authorization from the Irish regulator. Ripley confirmed: « We are in FX (foreign exchange), as well as in equity markets and stocks, in derivatives, commodities, and indices. »
The second phase is selling this infrastructure on a white-label basis (i.e., a technology stack other firms can rebrand and use as their own). Ripley noted: « We are in talks with a number of large banks, in the US and Europe, to use our infrastructure; we will see a lot of major financial players launch in the second half of this year. » Kraken already works with around thirty banks on its payments business.
IPO on the horizon and US bank license pursuit
Kraken filed an initial draft with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) in November 2025. Arjun Sethi confirmed the project is on track in April 2026. The IPO could land in 2027, six years after Coinbase’s listing, which saw its valuation exceed $85 billion on its first trading day.
On the regulatory front, Kraken is among the crypto firms pursuing a US bank license. Circle, Ripple, and BitGo have already filed applications and received initial approval. « That’s the next step: we’re thinking about it seriously, » Ripley said, without giving a specific timeline.
Separately, Kraken struck a partnership with a major French bank, making it the first Tier 1 institution in the European Union to offer crypto services to its clients via Kraken’s infrastructure. Bitcoin (BTC) traded at $77,000 last Friday, up 20 % after weeks of consolidation around $65,000.
Conclusion: a bet on the convergence of crypto and traditional banking
Kraken’s strategy illustrates the growing convergence between crypto infrastructure and the traditional financial system. The Fed master account, combined with acquisitions in payments and futures, gives the platform a rare operational foundation within the industry. The trust charter application and the pursuit of a full banking license are the logical next steps.
A delicate balance remains: convincing regulators without betraying the crypto-native identity of the brand. The Q2 2026 EBITDA drop also calls for caution on near-term profitability. If the 2027 IPO materializes, Kraken would become the first major crypto exchange to list after Coinbase, with a valuation potentially well above its November 2025 figure of $20 billion — assuming a more favorable market than in the first half.
Sources
- Cryptoast — Kraken wants to become a full-fledged bank
- Kraken — French bank case study
- Journal du Coin — Kraken wants to become a bank
- L’Agefi — Kraken’s ambition goes beyond crypto
- Finyear — Kraken becomes the first digital-asset bank to secure a Federal Reserve master account
- Boursorama — Kraken’s banking arm becomes the first crypto firm to secure a Fed payment account
This article is published for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice. Do your own research (DYOR) before making any decisions.
