Kraken

What is Kraken?

Kraken is a crypto exchange from the USA that, by its own account, launched more than 14 years ago.^[3] Customers in the European Economic Area are served by Payward Europe Solutions Limited in Dublin.^[5] You can buy Bitcoin simply in the Kraken app or through Kraken Pro with an order bookGlossaryOrder bookA list of all open buy and sell orders for a trading pair such as BTC/USD, sorted by price. The price forms between the highest bid and the lowest ask.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 1 – Ways to get Bitcoin →In the glossary →×.^[1]

Costs (as of September 2026)

• Instant buy and recurring buyTermSavings plan (Bitcoin savings plan)Automatically buying bitcoin at fixed intervals with a fixed amount, for example $50 a month.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 4 – Setting up a savings plan →In the glossary →AdLicensed providers with a paid linkProviders from our comparison21bitcoinBitcoin app · MiCA (FMA, Austria)No paid link for your country · Profile →RelaiBitcoin app · MiCA (AMF, France)No paid link for your country · Profile →BISONExchange · MiCA (BaFin, Germany)No paid link for your country · Profile →All 11 compared – including non-partners →*Paid link: if you sign up or buy through it, we earn a commission. Your price stays the same. How we make money →18+ · Crypto assets are highly volatile; you could lose all your money. No deposit protection.× (savings planGlossarySavings plan (Bitcoin savings plan)Automatically buying bitcoin at fixed intervals with a fixed amount, for example $50 a month. A savings plan takes the question of the right moment off your hands, but doesn’t promise a higher return.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 4 – Setting up a savings plan →In the glossary →×) in the app: 1% fee plus a spreadGlossarySpread (bid-ask spread)The difference between the buy and sell price. With many apps, the spread is the real fee – it just doesn’t appear as a separate item on your statement.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →In the glossary →× built into the price shown. Custom orders in the app: 1.5%.^[1]
• Kraken Pro: at the lowest tier 0.40% as a maker, 0.80% as a taker (see maker/takerGlossaryMaker and taker feesA fee model used by exchanges: whoever places an order in the order book and so provides liquidity (maker) usually pays less than someone who immediately accepts an existing order (taker).On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 1 – Ways to get Bitcoin →In the glossary →×); less as your volume grows.^[1]
• Withdrawal to your own wallet: on-chain 0.000015 BTC (1,500 sats), minimum 0.000218 BTC. Via LightningGlossaryLightning NetworkA second layer on top of Bitcoin for fast, low-cost payments. Amounts move off the blockchain via payment channels; only opening and closing a channel ends up in a block as a normal transaction.On the learning path: Stage 1 · Step 3 – How does Bitcoin work? →In the glossary →× 0.1%, from 0.00001 to 0.25 BTC per withdrawal.^[2]

Example: if you buy for $1,000, you pay a $10 fee plus the spread in the app, or $8 (taker) or $4 (maker) on Kraken Pro.^[1] How to compare prices is explained in Understanding fees.

Licence & custody

Since 25 June 2025, Payward Europe Solutions Limited has been authorised by the Central Bank of Ireland as a crypto-asset service provider (CASPGlossaryCASP (crypto-asset service provider)A company that professionally provides crypto-asset services to customers – such as trading, exchange, custody or transfers. In the EU, every CASP needs an authorisation under MiCA.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →In the glossary →×) under MiCAGlossaryMiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation)The EU regulation on markets in crypto-assets. Since 30 December 2024, exchanges, brokers and custodians in the EU have needed authorisation; the last transitional period ended on 1 July 2026. MiCA regulates providers, not Bitcoin itself.On the learning path: Stage 4 · Step 2 – Choosing a provider →In the glossary →×, covering custody, exchange for money and order execution, among other services. Through passporting, the licence applies across the EEA.^[5] What this means is explained in MiCA & regulation.

As long as your bitcoin are held at Kraken, Kraken is your custodianGlossaryCustodian (custodial)A provider such as an exchange or app that holds the private keys for you. Convenient, because support can help if you lose your password – but you don’t hold the bitcoin yourself and depend on the provider paying out.On the learning path: Stage 5 · Step 1 – Understanding custody →In the glossary →×. External auditors check its holdings regularly through proof of reserves; as of the snapshot date of 30 June 2026, Kraken reports that customers’ bitcoin balances are covered at 102.9%.^[4] Larger amounts still belong in self-custodyGlossarySelf-custodyYou hold the private keys to your bitcoin yourself – in your own wallet rather than with a provider. Nobody can freeze your bitcoin. But nobody can help you if you lose your seed phrase and keys.On the learning path: Stage 5 · Step 1 – Understanding custody →In the glossary →× in the long run: Your first withdrawal to your own wallet.

Regulatory proceedings and incidents

• USA, 2022: around $362,000 in a settlement with the sanctions authority OFAC, because users apparently located in Iran received services – an IP-based block was missing.^[6]
• USA, 2023: $30 million in a settlement with the securities regulator SEC over a staking programme for other crypto assets, which Kraken had to shut down in the USA.^[7]
• Netherlands, 2023/2024: €4 million in penalty payments because a Kraken entity kept offering crypto services in the Netherlands without registration despite an order from the Dutch central bank DNB.^[8]
• Australia, 2024: an A$8 million penalty for Bit Trade, Kraken’s Australian operator, over a margin product offered without the required target market determination.^[9]
• Security flaw, 2024: security researchers exploited a bug to withdraw almost $3 million; according to Kraken, the money came from company funds and customer balances were not affected.^[10]