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Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, signed a definitive agreement on October 14, 2026 to acquire Saldo Bank, a Lithuania-based lender holding a European Union banking license, according to Cointelegraph. The deal, announced Wednesday, would let Payward fold regulated deposit and lending services into the crypto trading it already offers European clients.
Payward is buying Saldo Finance Oy, a Finnish holding company whose subsidiary, Saldo Bank UAB, is licensed in Lithuania and supervised by the Bank of Lithuania, Bitcoinmagazine reported. Financial terms were not disclosed. The acquisition is expected to close in 2027, subject to regulatory approvals.
Also read: Kraken to revamp app with AI assistant that recommends trades based on user goals
Key facts
- Payward signed a definitive agreement to acquire Saldo Finance Oy; its subsidiary Saldo Bank UAB is a digital bank licensed in Lithuania.
- The bank operates in Lithuania, Finland, Sweden and Germany, and its authorization is passported into the Netherlands.
- Payward expects the acquisition to close in 2027, pending customary regulatory approvals.
- Saldo already offers retail term deposits across all four operating markets, plus consumer lending in Lithuania, Finland and Sweden and a credit card in Finland, per Bitcoinmagazine.
- Coinpedia reported the deal would mark the first time a digital asset company acquires a commercial bank in Europe.
What the license adds
An EU banking license would let Payward Banking offer interest on deposits, consumer and small and medium enterprise loans, and banking-as-a-service tools including card issuance, passporting and embedded lending for partners. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi framed the license as the foundation for a primary financial relationship, saying a regulated EU bank lets the company give European clients one place to hold assets, move them and put them to work. Bitcoinmagazine added that Sethi described the EU as the starting point with global ambition.
Coinpedia reported that customers could borrow cash against crypto or tokenized stock holdings without selling them, a feature Sethi said clients had requested. That outlet quoted Sethi as saying whoever holds the right to deposit, lend to, and issue payment instruments to a customer owns the relationship, with trading, staking, wealth management and treasury services building on top.
Also read: Kraken lets traders use tokenized stocks as collateral for leveraged trades
Payward said it already holds a Federal Reserve limited-purpose master account in the U.S. and an e-money license from the Central Bank of Ireland, and has originated more than $2 billion in loans, according to Bitcoinmagazine.
Why it matters
The purchase pushes a crypto-native company past trading and into regulated banking, where customer relationships are anchored by deposits and credit rather than order flow. It follows Payward’s earlier moves into regulated derivatives and payments, and arrives as European banks weigh how to serve clients holding digital assets. If completed, it would give Payward a licensed base in five European markets and a path to offer lending and card services under the same roof as its exchange.
What to watch
The next milestones are regulatory approvals across the relevant EU jurisdictions and the expected 2027 closing. Payward’s previous full approval from Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority, reported last week, signaled its broader expansion plans, and any change to deal terms or timing will hinge on how the reviewers move.
Reported by cointelegraph.com.
Sources: Cointelegraph, Coinpedia, Bitcoinmagazine