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Cryip 3 hours ago 73 * Kraken launched its Unified Wallet for clients in the European Economic Area on Kraken Pro on October 16, 2026 * The feature pools spot, margin, Earn and futures balances into one shared collateral pool, letting users trade futures without manually transferring funds between separate wallets * More than 40 cryptocurrencies plus US dollars, euros and gold can serve as futures collateral, with collateral value ratios that vary by asset liquidity Kraken rolled out its Unified Wallet feature to clients in the European Economic Area on October 16, 2026, according to the exchange's own blog, extending a product it had previously offered to other parts of its user base. The feature is available on Kraken Pro, the exchange's advanced trading interface, and is designed to eliminate a common friction point in crypto derivatives trading: the need to manually move funds between separate spot and futures wallets before opening a leveraged position. With Unified Wallet enabled, a client's spot, margin, Earn and futures balances are pooled together into a single shared collateral base, meaning funds sitting in, say, a spot holding or an Earn position can automatically serve as collateral for a futures trade without first being transferred into a dedicated futures wallet. Kraken says the feature supports more than 40 different cryptocurrencies as eligible collateral, alongside US dollars, euros and even gold, denoted by the ticker XAU, giving EEA clients a notably broad set of assets they can use to back a leveraged position. The exchange noted that collateral value ratios, meaning how much of a given asset's market value counts toward usable collateral, vary depending on that asset's liquidity, and that those ratios can change as market conditions shift. Kraken also offers two distinct margin modes under the new system: a cross margin mode, which is the default and pools a client's entire eligible balance as margin across positions, and an isolated margin mode, which caps exposure to a specific trade for clients using the platform's linear Multi-M futures contracts. Kraken operates its EEA business through several distinct regulated entities disclosed in the announcement: spot trading runs through Payward Europe Solutions Limited, authorized by the Central Bank of Ireland; derivatives trading runs through Payward Europe Digital Solutions (CY) Limited, which holds a Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission license; and custody of client assets runs through Payward Europe Solutions Limited acting as a Markets in Crypto-Assets, or MiCA, licensed custodian. That structure reflects how Kraken has organized its European operations to comply with the European Union's MiCA regulatory framework, which has reshaped how crypto firms operate across the bloc. By tying the Unified Wallet rollout explicitly to its MiCA-licensed entities, Kraken is positioning the feature as part of a broader push to deliver more sophisticated trading tools to European users within a fully regulated framework, rather than offering derivatives features that sit outside the EU's new crypto rulebook. The announcement, published on Kraken's own blog, did not specify whether the feature would later expand to clients outside the European Economic Area who do not yet have access to it. This post first appeared in Kraken brings its Unified Wallet, pooling spot and futures collateral, to the EEA. BitRss shares this Content always with License. Screenshot generated in real time with SneakPeek Suite * homepage * technology * Kraken brings its Unified Wallet, pooling spot and futures collateral, to the EEA.

Kraken parent Payward moves into European banking with Saldo deal. October 19, 2026 NewsBTC general Positive Payward, the parent company of leading crypto exchange Kraken, has agreed to acquire Saldo Bank, a licensed banking institution based in Lithuania, in a landmark move that positions the crypto firm to operate as a fully licensed European bank rather than simply holding an exchange registration. This proposed acquisition gives Payward direct access to European banking infrastructure, enabling the company to offer services such as deposit accounts, lending, and payment processing under an existing regulatory framework - a significant competitive advantage over crypto firms still navigating the EU's MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets) licensing process. The Saldo Bank deal reflects a broader trend of crypto-native companies pursuing traditional banking licenses to deepen their financial services offerings and attract institutional clients who require regulated counterparty relationships. Kraken, which supports trading in Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and hundreds of altcoins, has been aggressively expanding its footprint in Europe following its acquisition of NinjaTrader and other strategic moves in 2024 and 2025. Lithuania has emerged as a preferred EU licensing hub for fintech and crypto firms due to its streamlined regulatory environment. The acquisition still requires regulatory approval before completion. Investors and competitors should watch whether this banking pivot accelerates Kraken's European user growth and whether rival exchanges like Coinbase and Binance pursue similar licensed banking strategies across the EU. Payward, the company behind crypto exchange Kraken, has agreed to acquire Lithuania-based Saldo Bank, taking a route into European banking that goes beyond obtaining another exchange registration. TL;DR: The proposed acquisition would give Payward an existing licensed banking operation in Europe.