Kraken Financial Wins Limited Purpose Fed Master Account, Gaining Direct Fedwire Access

Kraken Financial received approval from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City for a Limited Purpose Master Account on March 4, 2026, granting the Wyoming-chartered SPDI direct access to the Fedwire payment system. The "Skinny Account" structure allows Kraken to clear and settle USD payments without correspondent banks but excludes overnight reserve interest, Discount Window access, and daylight overdrafts, with the Kansas City Fed keeping specific risk constraints confidential. Kraken, which operates on a 100 percent reserve basis and cannot make loans, spent over five years on the application initially filed in October 2020, while the Federal Reserve classified it as a Tier 3 applicant, the strictest review category for uninsured entities without federal supervision. The decision drew criticism from the Bank Policy Institute, ICBA, and American Bankers Association, which argued approval came before the Federal Reserve Board finalized broader policy for such "Payment Account" arrangements and cited AML and BSA concerns, though Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon welcomed the move as support for the state's banking and digital asset laws.