Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has agreed to acquire Saldo Bank, a Lithuania-based lender, in a deal that would make Payward the first cryptocurrency company to own a bank in Europe. The acquisition price was not disclosed.
Saldo Bank holds approximately $190 million in total assets and is licensed to operate in Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, and Germany, with a passport to serve the Netherlands. The bank provides deposits, consumer and business loans, and payment services.
The deal would grant Payward an EU banking license, enabling it to expand beyond cryptocurrency trading into traditional financial services. European customers would gain access to interest-bearing deposits, loans, card services, and euro payments through the combined entity.
Expansion into regulated banking
Payward's banking arm has already originated more than $2 billion in loans and holds a Federal Reserve limited-purpose master account and an electronic money institution license in Ireland, according to the company.
In the U.S., Payward has applied for a national trust bank charter. The Lithuania acquisition comes after Kraken sought a banking license in the country earlier this year.
"A regulated EU bank is the piece that lets us serve European clients the way a primary financial institution should: one place to hold assets, move them freely, and put them to work," said Arjun Sethi, Payward's co-CEO.
The acquisition remains subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in 2027.
