Kraken's Parent Company Acquires Lithuanian Bank, Becoming First Crypto Firm to Buy a European Bank
nashnova research
Payward, Kraken's parent company, is acquiring licensed Lithuanian bank Saldo Bank — making it the first crypto firm to buy a European bank. The deal signals that crypto's push into traditional finance has moved from licence applications to outright bank ownership.
What exactly is Payward buying?
Saldo Bank received its EU banking licence in 2021 and currently offers consumer and corporate loans, term deposits, and other traditional banking services.
This means → Payward is not acquiring a shell licence. It is buying an operating bank with a full suite of banking products.
The deal's price was not disclosed. Closing is expected after regulatory approval, targeted for 2027.
Why does a crypto exchange need a bank?
Co-CEO Arjun Sethi told the Financial Times: "Customers kept asking us, 'I want the same products and services I get from other banks.'"
Once the deal closes, Payward plans to merge crypto and traditional banking on one platform — letting users borrow against assets they hold without selling them, plus access credit cards and deposits.
In plain terms = today Kraken is a place to trade crypto. Tomorrow it could also be where you open a savings account, get a loan, or apply for a credit card — all under one roof.
How does this compare with US crypto-banking efforts?
In the US, Coinbase and Ripple hold OCC-approved national trust bank charters — these allow asset custody and transaction services but do not permit deposit-taking.
The EU banking licence Payward gains through Saldo Bank is broader in scope, covering deposits, lending, and other core banking functions.
This means → on the spectrum of crypto firms acquiring banking powers, the EU route goes deeper than anything available in the US — full bank acquisition versus a limited-function charter.
Why are traditional banks pushing back?
The Independent Community Bankers of America filed a lawsuit this month challenging the OCC's practice of granting trust charters to crypto firms, calling it "a side door into the banking system" that bypasses equivalent regulatory costs.
Sethi's response: "This isn't about whether it's good or bad for banks. We're simply a new kind of bank operating in the same jurisdictions, under the same rules."
This reflects a core tension: crypto's banking expansion now threatens traditional banks not on technology, but on licence access and regulatory cost parity.
What comes next?
The most immediate checkpoint: whether this acquisition clears EU regulatory approval.
The deeper question: once crypto assets and traditional banking sit on the same platform, how will risk management and depositor protection be structured — the issue regulators care about most.
In plain terms = buying a bank is step one. The harder part is convincing regulators that a crypto company can safeguard depositors' money as reliably as a traditional bank.
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