Kraken moves to acquire $181 million European bank in major push beyond crypto trading

Kraken's parent company Payward has agreed to acquire Saldo Finance Oy, a Finnish holding company that owns Lithuania-based Saldo Bank, in a deal valued at $181 million. The acquisition would give Payward control of a licensed European bank, marking a major expansion beyond crypto trading into traditional financial services. For traders, this signals continued institutional consolidation and crypto firms' push into regulated banking, which could boost confidence in the sector's mainstream adoption.