Payward Connects Kraken to Singapore Gulf Bank for 24/7 Settlement
The link with Singapore Gulf Bank should let institutional clients in Asia and the Gulf region settle cash 24/7, outside normal banking hours.
Key Takeaways
- Payward connected Singapore Gulf Bank to its real-time clearing network for 24/7 settlement of qualifying digital asset transactions.
- The first rollout starts with U.S. dollars for a select group of institutional clients in permitted jurisdictions in Asia and the Gulf region.
- According to the bank, SGB Net processes more than $20 billion in fiat transactions per month, and Payward wants to add more clients and currencies later.
Payward, the financial infrastructure company behind crypto exchange Kraken, has connected Singapore Gulf Bank to its real-time clearing network. That means institutional clients can now settle qualifying digital asset transactions 24/7 and also put money to work for trading on non-banking days.
The first rollout starts with U.S. dollars for a select group of clients in permitted jurisdictions in Asia and the Gulf region. According to Payward, the link addresses a familiar problem in the crypto market: crypto trades around the clock, but the money behind them is often still tied to bank hours and multi-day settlement.
Bank Hours Remain a Bottleneck
Mark Greenberg, chief commercial officer of Payward, said that exchanges, payment providers, OTC desks, and fintechs all run into the same limit. The market does not stop at the end of the workday, but cash settlement does. With SGB Net, clients can deposit money with Payward and use it right away.
The move fits into Payward's broader shift, which goes beyond Kraken as just a trading platform. The company is also building the infrastructure that connects trading, custody, payments, and banking. Reuters previously reported that BNY is in talks with Payward about a possible partnership around digital assets, custody, trading, and payments. The broader expansion of Payward also shows that the company is increasingly focused on financial infrastructure alongside the exchange itself.
SGB Net Keeps Growing
For Singapore Gulf Bank, the link means institutional clients can move cash and trade without waiting for the next banking day. The companies did not say how many clients are joining the first rollout or what the volumes are.
SGB Net launched in 2025 and, according to the bank, processes more than $20 billion (€17.8 billion) in fiat transactions per month. Payward and SGB want to add more clients and more currencies later, although it is not yet known exactly when that will happen.
Why This Matters
For European crypto followers, this shows how quickly the line between traditional banking infrastructure and crypto trading is fading. For institutional players in particular, 24/7 settlement can matter because liquidity and access to cash become less dependent on bank hours. That could also matter for firms offering crypto services in multiple regions at once, including Europe.
