Kraken Parent Payward to Buy EU Bank Saldo in Crypto First

By Amara Osei

Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has agreed to acquire Saldo Bank, a Lithuania-based online bank licensed in the European Union. Once the deal closes, Payward becomes the first crypto-native firm to own a European bank. The company expects completion in 2027, pending regulatory approval.

Payward didn't disclose the price. A Kraken spokesperson said the company doesn't reveal financial terms for its deals.

What does the acquisition unlock?

The purchase gives the Wyoming-based company banking reach across Lithuania, Finland, Sweden and Germany, plus permission to operate in the Netherlands. Under EU rules, banks can extend services into other member countries through a process called passporting, rather than seeking a separate license in each market.

The service list is concrete:

• Deposits that earn interest
• Loans for consumers and small businesses
• Credit cards
• Euro transfers through SEPA, the system that simplifies payments across European borders

Payward would also lean on Saldo's license to provide banking infrastructure that other fintech companies could use to build their own products.

"Once the deal closes in 2027, we hope to expand shortly thereafter," a Kraken spokesperson told Fortune.

How does Kraken outpace Coinbase and Ripple?

The move puts Kraken ahead of U.S. peers. Coinbase and Ripple hold national trust charters that only allow them to safeguard funds and move money. Neither can touch customer deposits. An EU banking license removes that ceiling for Payward in Europe.

"A regulated EU bank is the piece that lets us serve European clients the way a primary financial institution should: one place to hold assets, move them freely, and put them to work," said Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Payward, in a statement.

What's the wider pattern?

The Saldo deal is Payward's third major financial-infrastructure move this cycle. Seven months ago, its U.S. banking arm, Kraken Financial, secured a limited-purpose account with the Federal Reserve. That arrangement lets Payward send and receive dollar payments directly through Fedwire, the Fed's payment system, without relying on intermediary banks.

Last month, Nasdaq agreed to invest $100 million in Payward at a reported $21 billion valuation. The two companies are developing blockchain-based versions of stocks, expected to launch in the second quarter of 2027, with Kraken serving as a distribution platform.

Taken together, Payward is assembling direct rails on both sides of the Atlantic: Fedwire access for dollars, a European banking license for euros, and a tokenized-equities pipeline with Nasdaq. If regulators sign off in 2027, Kraken will compete with retail banks on their own turf — deposits, credit cards and SEPA transfers — rather than just trading crypto alongside them.