The American exchange Kraken significantly transformed its European presence throughout 2025. Key developments included obtaining a MiCA license from the Central Bank of Ireland, deploying services across 30 EEA countries, launching the Krak Card in partnership with Mastercard, introducing tokenized stocks with xStocks, and establishing a strategic alliance with Circle for stablecoin operations. These initiatives positioned Kraken as a major player in the European market.
In Brief
- •Kraken obtained its MiCA license and expanded its services to 30 EEA countries.
- •The exchange enhanced its offerings with xStocks, the Krak Card, and significant partnerships with Circle, Mastercard, and Deutsche Börse.
- •2025 marked an accelerated convergence between the cryptocurrency and traditional finance sectors for Kraken.
MiCA License: A Passport for 30 European Countries
On June 25, 2025, Kraken secured its MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets) license from the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI). This authorization represents a significant turning point, making Kraken the first major global exchange to receive approval from this regulator, known for its stringent standards.
“Obtaining a license from the Central Bank of Ireland, with its long tradition and experience as a rigorous financial regulator, is not just a matter of compliance. It is a strong signal of Kraken’s commitment to developing the crypto ecosystem through responsible innovation,” stated Arjun Sethi, co-CEO of Kraken.
On August 13, 2025, Kraken activated its MiCA license across all 30 countries of the European Economic Area (EEA), which includes the 27 EU member states along with Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. Consequently, all European clients are now serviced by Kraken’s MiCA-regulated entity, operating under a unified regulatory framework.
This MiCA license complements two other crucial authorizations obtained in 2025: a MiFID license in February 2025, enabling the offering of regulated derivatives to advanced traders, and an EMI license (Electronic Money Institution) in March 2025, facilitating payment services and fiat currency operations. Collectively, these three licenses empower Kraken to provide a comprehensive and regulated suite of services throughout the European Union.
xStocks: Tokenized American Stocks Arrive in Europe
In September 2025, Kraken expanded its xStocks offering to European investors. Developed in collaboration with the Swiss fintech Backed Finance, this product enables users to acquire tokenized versions of American stocks and ETFs directly through the Kraken application.
At its launch, the platform featured 55 blue-chip stocks and 5 ETFs, including popular names like Apple, Tesla, NVIDIA, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft, as well as the SPDR S&P 500 (SPY). These assets are issued as SPL tokens on the Solana blockchain, offering distinct advantages over traditional trading mechanisms.
Extended Trading: xStocks are tradable on Kraken 24/5, extending beyond the limited hours of Wall Street trading. For users who store their tokens in a Solana-compatible wallet, trading is available 24/7 through decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols such as Jupiter or Raydium.
Fractional Investment: Investors can acquire xStocks starting from just €1, eliminating the need to purchase an entire share. This approach democratizes access to securities that may have unit prices exceeding several hundred dollars.
Reinvested Dividends: Dividends generated by the underlying stocks are automatically reinvested into the corresponding asset. Instead of receiving cash payouts, investors see their token balance increase proportionally through a multiplier system managed by Backed Finance.
Since its introduction, the xStocks platform has facilitated over $10 billion in trading volume, indicating a strong demand for tokenized traditional assets.
Strategic Partnerships: Mastercard, Circle, Deutsche Börse
Krak Card: Spend Your Cryptos Everywhere with Mastercard
On November 25, 2025, Kraken officially launched the Krak Card, a Mastercard debit card that allows users to spend over 400 cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies. This card is available to residents of the European Union and the United Kingdom and can be used at the 150 million merchants globally that accept Mastercard.
The Krak Card distinguishes itself with a complete absence of fees for transactions and currency exchange. Additionally, it offers up to 1% cashback on all purchases, excluding ATM withdrawals. Users have the option to receive this cashback in euros, British pounds, or Bitcoin.
An innovative feature is the multi-source payment capability. If a purchase, for example, of €100, cannot be fully covered by Bitcoin, the card will automatically draw the remaining €20 from another asset of the user’s choice. This flexibility removes friction associated with prior conversion steps.
Circle: Strengthening Stablecoin Infrastructure
In September 2025, Kraken announced a partnership with Circle, the issuer of the USDC and EURC stablecoins. The objective of this collaboration is to enhance liquidity, reduce conversion fees, and introduce access to EURC, Circle’s euro-backed stablecoin.
This partnership is part of a larger trend: the total market capitalization of stablecoins surpassed $308 billion in December 2025, with an annual transaction volume exceeding $4 trillion. Circle, registered as an electronic money institution in France, is recognized as the first stablecoin issuer globally to comply with MiCA regulations.
Deutsche Börse: Bridge to Traditional Finance
In December 2025, Kraken and Deutsche Börse Group revealed a strategic partnership designed to connect traditional financial markets with digital assets. The initial phase involves integrating Kraken with 360T, Deutsche Börse’s foreign exchange trading platform, which is one of the largest worldwide. This integration provides Kraken’s institutional clients with access to bank-level currency liquidity.
Kraken Embed: White-Label Crypto for Banks
In April 2025, Kraken introduced Kraken Embed, a Crypto-as-a-Service solution. This offering allows banks, brokers, and fintech companies to integrate cryptocurrency trading capabilities into their existing platforms within weeks, without the need for extensive internal infrastructure development.
The first partner to utilize this service was bunq, Europe's second-largest neobank. In April 2025, bunq launched "Bunq Crypto," enabling its users to open accounts and trade over 300 cryptocurrencies rapidly. The service was initially deployed in the Netherlands, France, Spain, Ireland, Italy, and Belgium, with plans for expansion into the rest of the EEA, the UK, and the United States.
“Our Crypto-as-a-Service solution enables a wide range of financial institutions to efficiently meet growing customer demand without the complexity and overhead of running their own platform,” commented Brett McLain, Head of Payments and Blockchain at Kraken.
NinjaTrader: $1.5 Billion to Merge TradFi and Crypto
In March 2025, Kraken announced the acquisition of NinjaTrader for $1.5 billion, marking the largest transaction to date between the traditional finance and cryptocurrency sectors. NinjaTrader, established in 2003, is a leading US futures trading platform for retail traders, serving nearly 2 million users.
This acquisition offers several strategic advantages, including access to US futures through NinjaTrader’s FCM (Futures Commission Merchant) license. It also facilitates accelerated international expansion via Kraken’s MiFID licenses in Europe and the UK. Furthermore, it enables clients of both platforms to seamlessly trade cryptocurrencies, futures, and traditional financial products.
NinjaTrader will continue to operate as an independent platform within the Kraken suite, with progressive integration of the trading ecosystems planned.
Financial Results and 2026 Outlook
The first quarter of 2025 demonstrated strong financial performance, with revenue reaching $472 million (a 19% increase year-over-year) and adjusted EBITDA at $187 million (a 17% increase). Trading volume totaled $208.7 billion (a 29% increase), and the number of funded accounts grew to 3.9 million (a 26% increase).
The euro now accounts for 17.5% of the global crypto spot volume in fiat, more than doubling its share from the previous year. Kraken holds approximately 35% of the euro-denominated crypto liquidity, reinforcing its dominant position in this market.
In November 2025, Kraken successfully raised $800 million at a $20 billion valuation from investors including Citadel Securities, Jane Street, and DRW Venture Capital. The exchange also confidentially submitted a draft registration statement with the SEC for an initial public offering (IPO), with a potential launch anticipated in 2026.
To conclude the year, Kraken organized a Celebration Tour 2025 across Europe, engaging directly with its community in cities such as Riga, Lisbon, Dublin, Warsaw, and Frankfurt.
2025 Timeline: Key Milestones
- •January 2025: Launch of Kraken Pay, enabling cross-border payments in over 300 cryptocurrencies.
- •February 2025: Acquisition of MiFID license, allowing for regulated derivatives trading in Europe.
- •March 2025: Acquisition of NinjaTrader for $1.5 billion, alongside obtaining an EMI license.
- •April 2025: Announcement of Mastercard partnership and the launch of Kraken Embed with bunq.
- •June 2025: MiCA license obtained from the Central Bank of Ireland.
- •August 2025: Activation of MiCA license across the 30 EEA countries.
- •September 2025: Launch of xStocks in Europe and establishment of a partnership with Circle for USDC/EURC.
- •November 2025: Successful $800 million funding round at a $20 billion valuation, and the launch of the Krak Card.
- •December 2025: Formation of a partnership with Deutsche Börse, filing for a confidential IPO, and the acquisition of Backed Finance.