Kraken just scored a major first: its Wyoming-based bank now has a direct line to the Federal Reserve.
That means Kraken Financial can plug directly into the U.S. payment system—Fedwire—without relying on traditional middlemen banks. It’s the first digital asset bank in the country to get that kind of access.
The timing lines up with Kraken’s bigger ambitions. The company recently filed confidentially for an IPO and raised $800 million at a $20 billion valuation, with backing from Citadel Securities and others.
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The new setup is aimed at institutional clients at first, letting them move fiat faster and with fewer headaches. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi says it pulls Kraken off the sidelines and puts it inside the core banking system.
Kraken Financial is a full-reserve bank, meaning it holds 100% of client deposits in liquid assets. The rollout will be gradual, with more features added as regulators sign off.
