Kraken’s parent company obtained full direct access to the U.S. Federal Reserve System through its regulated banking entity.
Kraken Financial, a digital asset bank registered in the state of Wyoming, received a master account with the Federal Reserve. This is the first case in U.S. history where a specialized crypto bank gained direct access to the Fed’s payment infrastructure.
The decision allows Kraken Financial to connect directly to key U.S. payment rails, including the Fedwire interbank settlement system, without relying on intermediary banks.
Integration with the Fed will take place gradually. At the initial stage, the focus will be on servicing institutional clients of the Kraken platform. Later, in coordination with both state and federal regulators, the integration with the Fed will be expanded across the entire Payward infrastructure.
Payward is a U.S.-based financial technology company founded in 2011 and serves as the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken. The company develops infrastructure for digital asset operations, including trading, custody, settlements, and banking services through Kraken Financial.
Obtaining the master account is the result of more than five years of engagement with regulators and compliance reviews. Kraken Financial operates as a special purpose depository institution (SPDI) in the state of Wyoming and follows a full-reserve model, meaning the bank’s liquid assets equal or exceed 100% of customer fiat deposits.
According to Payward and Kraken Co-CEO Arjun Sethi, receiving the master account effectively integrates digital asset infrastructure with the sovereign financial system of the United States. “We can operate not as a peripheral participant in the U.S. banking system, but as a directly connected financial institution,” he said. Direct access to Fedwire will allow settlements to be conducted without correspondent banks, reduce operational costs, and simplify U.S. dollar fund flows for institutional clients.
Kraken’s management believes the new architecture lays the groundwork for a more resilient operating model. Potentially, it could enable atomic settlements between fiat currencies and digital assets, combine cash liquidity management with digital asset custody, and allow the development of programmable financial products within a fully regulated environment.
Kraken Financial plans to continue working with the Federal Reserve and Wyoming regulators to expand payment capabilities and build infrastructure that connects the digital asset market with the traditional financial system.
In October 2025, Federal Reserve leadership announced the possibility of creating a new type of account for FinTech companies — simplified master accounts designed to make it easier for alternative payment providers to access key U.S. payment infrastructure.
