What makes Kraken the most globally regulated crypto exchange?

Since 2011, we have approached every new market, product, and asset class by engaging regulators directly and building the infrastructure required to operate compliantly.

Kraken is the flagship product of Payward, Inc., the parent company behind a portfolio of related businesses, including NinjaTrader, Bitnomial, Breakout, xStocks, and CF Benchmarks. Many of the regulatory licenses leveraged by Kraken are held by these Payward subsidiaries.

The result is a regulatory footprint that no other platform can match:

• A US Wyoming Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) bank charter, and a national trust company application with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)
• A Federal Reserve limited purpose master account, granting direct access to the US payments system through the SPDI
• A full US derivatives stack: a Designated Contract Market (DCM), Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO), and Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) held through Bitnomial, making Kraken the only crypto-native firm in the US with all three CFTC licenses needed for a vertically integrated derivatives business, alongside a second FCM through NinjaTrader Clearing, LLC (dba Kraken Derivatives US), both NFA members
• A Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) broker-dealer registration (Kraken Securities LLC) and SEC-registered investment adviser (Kraken Adviser LLC)
• A Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Money Services Business (MSB) registration and Money Transmitter Licenses across 46 US jurisdictions (states, DC, and Puerto Rico), permitting fiat deposit, withdrawal, and money-movement services to Kraken clients across the United States
• Two Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP) authorizations and an E-Money Institution (EMI) license with the Central Bank of Ireland, all passported across the 30 European Economic Area (EEA) countries
• A UK Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) Multilateral Trading Facility (MTF) license with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), providing a global derivatives venue for futures and options (Crypto Facilities Limited)
• A UK FCA-authorized Benchmark Administrator providing regulated administration of financial benchmarks, including crypto-asset indices used in derivatives and structured products (CF Benchmarks Ltd, FRN 847100)
• A MiFID Investment Firm license with the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) in Cyprus (Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited), authorizing regulated investment and ancillary services across the EEA
• Preliminary Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) approval for a broker-dealer, investment and management license in Dubai, UAE
• More than 100 actively maintained licenses globally

Kraken Financial holds a Wyoming Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) bank charter — the first-ever US crypto bank charter, recognized under both federal and state law.

Kraken Financial also became the first digital asset bank to receive a Federal Reserve master account, providing direct access to the US payments system. Payward has also filed an application with the OCC for a national trust company charter and maintains US Money Transmitter Licenses across 46 jurisdictions. Payward Interactive, Inc. is also registered with FinCEN as a Money Services Business, providing the federal foundation that supports our nationwide money-transmission activity.

In the US, Kraken holds the first fully CFTC-licensed crypto-native derivatives stack as a Designated Contract Market (DCM), Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO), and Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) through its sister Payward subsidiary Bitnomial.

This makes Kraken the first crypto-native firm in the US with all three CFTC licenses. Derivatives brokerage is additionally supported by NinjaTrader Clearing, LLC (dba Kraken Derivatives US), an FCM registered with the CFTC and member of the NFA.

Kraken operates under more than 100 active regulatory licenses across 30+ countries. In Ireland, we hold an EMI license and two CASP authorizations under MiCA with the Central Bank of Ireland, all passported across the 30 EEA countries.

In Cyprus, we hold a MiFID Investment Firm license with CySEC, authorizing regulated investment and ancillary services across the EU under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive.

In the UK, we are an FCA Registered Cryptoasset Firm, an FCA-authorized Electronic Money Institution, and operate an FCA Authorised Investment Firm (the UK's post-Brexit MiFID-equivalent regime) through Crypto Facilities Limited.

In Canada, Australia, Bermuda, Argentina, and the UAE we hold direct local authorizations — not workarounds.

Our unified regulatory platform runs global compliance operations around the clock. We maintain 80+ live legislative initiatives globally and are actively engaged with 60+ regulators across every major jurisdiction where we operate.

In 2020, Kraken Financial became the first digital asset company in US history to receive a bank charter recognized under federal and state law. The charter came from the State of Wyoming, which created the Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) framework specifically to bring rigorous banking oversight to digital assets.

An SPDI is a full-reserve bank. Unlike traditional fractional-reserve banks, an SPDI must maintain unencumbered liquid assets equal to at least 100% of all client fiat deposits at all times. Your money is not lent out. It is held in reserve, in full, for you.

In 2026, Kraken's parent company Payward filed an application with the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to establish a national trust company focused on institutional-grade digital asset custody. Once approved, Kraken will be the only crypto exchange in the world operating under both a state bank charter and a federal trust charter simultaneously.

Banking and custody licenses govern who can hold client funds and how those funds must be safeguarded. They are typically the most stringent regulatory category, because they determine whether a firm can take custody of money on behalf of others under prudential supervision.

Authorizations in this category are what set Kraken apart from typical crypto exchanges — most of which operate as money transmitters rather than chartered banks. A bank charter brings capital requirements, full-reserve obligations, and in the case of an SPDI, direct integration with the US Federal Reserve.

The licenses below are the foundation that allows Kraken to act as both an exchange and a regulated custodian for client assets.

Derivatives and securities licenses authorize a firm to offer regulated financial products beyond simple spot crypto trading including futures, margin, equities, and investment advice. Each license carries its own conduct, disclosure, capital, and client-money obligations tailored to the product type.

In the United States, futures activity is regulated by the CFTC (through FCM registrations and NFA membership) and securities activity is regulated by the SEC (through broker-dealer and investment-adviser registrations). In Europe, the equivalent regime is MiFID II, the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, administered locally which in Kraken's case is through CySEC in Cyprus and the FCA in the United Kingdom.

The breadth of authorizations below reflects Kraken's strategy of offering a complete regulated trading stack to retail and institutional clients in every major market.

Crypto asset licenses are the newer and faster-evolving regulatory category, designed specifically to govern crypto custody, exchange, trading platforms, and related services.

The two most consequential global regimes are the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), which Kraken holds through two CASP authorizations passported across the 30 EEA countries, and the UK's FCA cryptoasset registration scheme.

Other jurisdictions, including Bermuda, Argentina, Australia, and Canada operate their own bespoke crypto regimes, each with its own governance, capital, AML, and consumer-protection requirements. Kraken holds direct local authorizations in every jurisdiction below, not workarounds through unregulated affiliates or offshore intermediaries.

Together these licenses cover spot trading, custody, order execution, transfers, portfolio management, the operation of trading venues for crypto-assets, and the regulated administration of crypto-asset indices used in derivatives products.

Payments and money transmission licenses authorize the movement of fiat funds between clients, accounts, and counterparties — the rails that let a customer deposit, withdraw, or send money on the platform.

In the United States, this requires both federal Money Services Business (MSB) registration with Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and state-by-state Money Transmitter Licenses, because payments are regulated at the state level and each state imposes its own bonding, capital, reporting, and consumer-protection requirements.

Outside the US, equivalent regimes exist through Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) in Canada, AUSTRAC's Independent Remittance Dealer registration in Australia, and AML registrations in markets like Argentina.

Sourced from kraken.com/legal/disclosures. Kraken does not serve residents of Maine (ME) or New York (NY).

Kraken operates with direct regulatory authorization in more countries than any other crypto exchange. We enter every market through the front door — direct regulator engagement, transparent operations, and local compliance infrastructure.

SPDI bank charter (Wyoming), Fed master account, OCC national trust application (pending), the CFTC trifecta of DCM, DCO, and FCM via Bitnomial (Payward sister subsidiary), additional FCM via NinjaTrader Clearing dba Kraken Derivatives US, SEC broker-dealer (Kraken Securities), SEC investment adviser (Kraken Adviser), FinCEN MSB, Money Transmitter licenses in 46 US jurisdictions, OSC and provincial Restricted Dealer (Canada), FINTRAC MSB (Canada).

Central Bank of Ireland EMI (Payward Ireland Limited), two Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) CASP authorizations under MiCA (Payward Europe Solutions Limited and Payward Global Solutions Limited) passported across all 30 EEA countries, MiFID Investment Firm via CySEC (Cyprus), FCA Registered Cryptoasset Firm (UK), FCA Electronic Money Institution (UK), UK MiFID Multilateral Trading Facility via Crypto Facilities Limited (UK), FCA Benchmark Administrator via CF Benchmarks Ltd (UK).

AUSTRAC Digital Currency Exchange and Independent Remittance Dealer (Bit Trade Pty Ltd, Australia), ASIC AFSL via Beaufort Fiduciaries Pty Ltd (Australia).

Preliminary VARA approval for broker-dealer, investment and management license (Payward, Dubai, UAE).

CNV Virtual Asset Service Provider registration with AML license (Payward Trading Limited — Argentinian Branch).

Bermuda Monetary Authority Class F Digital Asset Business License (Payward Digital Solutions Ltd).

Kraken publishes a Proof of Reserves twice per year — a cryptographically verifiable audit that confirms Kraken holds sufficient assets to cover 100% of all client balances. The audit is conducted by an independent third-party auditor (The Network Firm LLP) and the results are published publicly.

Our compliance team maintains 24/7 global operations, with active engagement across live legislative initiatives and ongoing regulator engagements.

For those that expect more from their crypto platforms and require a higher standard, Kraken offers a unmatched trading experience built from the ground up to be compliant globally.