Kraken Debuts ‘Embed’ to Help Banks Offer Crypto Access

Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has introduced a solution to help financial institutions give clients access to crypto.

Dubbed “Embed,” the company’s new Crypto-as-a-Service (CaaS) solution is designed for neobanks, FinTechs and traditional banks, Kraken said in a Wednesday (April 30) news release.

“Kraken Embed significantly simplifies operational and infrastructure requirements, enabling financial institutions to make regulated crypto trading available to their customers without extensive in-house expertise in a matter of weeks,” the company said.

“Using Kraken Embed, institutions benefit from the exchange’s proven market experience, robust liquidity and industry-leading infrastructure.”

The release adds that Kraken has already integrated with at least one partner, European neobank bunq.

Kraken says the launch of Embed aligns with global crypto adoption trends, especially in Europe, where market activity is being driven by the advent of regulations such as the European Union’s Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) framework.

“Through Embed, Kraken is extending its deep expertise to institutions seeking a reliable, compliant and frictionless entrypoint into crypto,” Brett McLain, head of payments and blockchain at Kraken, said in the release.

“Our goal is to empower banks and fintechs globally to adapt and thrive as crypto continues to gain mainstream adoption.”

PYMNTS explored that growing mainstream adoption in a report last week, as banks such as ING have begun to collaborate on stablecoin projects.

These banks, that report said, are “motivated both by the fear of being left behind and the opportunity to define new standards. These are robust, multi-bank consortia aiming for real-world use cases — cross-border payments, corporate treasuries and eventually programmable money at scale.”

In the meantime, settlement infrastructure is catching up. The Lynq network — created by Arca Labs, Tassat Group, and tZERO — aims to deliver real-time, yield-bearing settlements, a marked upgrade from legacy systems that still settle on T+2 timelines. This settlement innovation, which also includes participation from U.S. Bank, is crucial for both risk management and opening the door to new types of financial products.

The industry is also facing a redefined regulatory regime, something that is both a hurdle and “an on-ramp for credibility,” the report added.

“By building within clearer rules, crypto firms are opening doors to mainstream adoption. In this way, the ‘compliance crunch’ is less a death knell and more a growth spurt — setting the stage for new business models and products that would have been unimaginable in the industry’s early days,” PYMNTS wrote.