Kraken’s banking arm becomes first crypto firm to secure payments account with Fed

Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken’s banking unit has gained access to the Federal Reserve’s payments system through a limited-purpose account, the first US digital-asset bank to do so as the sector deepens its reach into mainstream finance.

Through its Fed master account, Kraken Financial can link directly to ‌core US ⁠payment ⁠systems such as Fedwire, avoiding intermediary banks and enabling faster, more efficient fiat transfers for ​institutional clients, while reducing operational complexity and costs, the company said in a ​blog post on Wednesday.