Payward Buys Saldo Bank and Moves Toward an EU Banking License
With the Lithuanian bank, Kraken parent Payward also wants to offer euro payments, loans, and card services in Europe. The move fits the broader shift toward banking licenses under close ECB supervision.
Key Takeaways
- Payward, Kraken's parent company, wants to acquire Saldo Bank to get an EU banking license.
- The Lithuanian bank has licenses in several EU countries and a passport to operate in the Netherlands.
- The deal still needs regulatory approval and is scheduled to close in 2027.
Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, wants to acquire Saldo Bank in order to get an EU banking license. With that, the crypto company wants to go beyond crypto trading and also offer traditional financial services in Europe.
First Crypto Bank Deal in Europe
According to a Financial Times report, this would be the first time a crypto company in Europe buys a bank. The acquisition of the Lithuanian bank is not yet complete, and the price has not been disclosed. Payward did not immediately respond to questions about the value of the deal.
Saldo Bank had total assets of 163.9 million euros at the end of 2025, equal to about $180 million (€161 million). That was 22.7% higher than a year earlier, according to The Banks. The bank has licenses in Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, and Germany, and a passport to operate in the Netherlands.
What Payward Wants to Do With It
Payward says that a regulated EU bank should help the company better serve European customers. Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Payward, said such a bank should give customers one place to hold assets, move them freely, and put them to work.
The banking license could give Payward access to interest-bearing bank deposits, loans, card services, and euro payments. The company says its banking arm has already issued more than $2 billion (€1.8 billion) in loans. In the US, Payward also has an application pending for a national trust bank charter, while its banking arm there already has limited access to the Federal Reserve payment system.
Signal for European Regulators
For European crypto news readers, the key point is that crypto companies are increasingly looking at banking licenses to expand their services. The European Central Bank has been watching that trend for some time and, in its supervision, pointed to the risks around stablecoins and the need for tighter rules. That makes deals like this not just a business story, but also a sign of how close crypto and traditional banks are getting to each other.
The deal still needs regulatory approval and is scheduled to close in 2027. Block's application for a banking license also shows that more crypto companies want to expand their services through a banking structure.
