Kraken

What is Kraken?

Kraken is a crypto exchange based in San Francisco that has been around for about as long as the crypto industry itself. It is regulated by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which adds an additional layer of security and comfort to users of this exchange. In general, Kraken is considered to be an extremely reliable exchange. The company itself states that it exists for “those who demand fast execution, innovative features, exceptional support and high security” and that it “always put[s] the client first”. It also promotes itself as being the most trusted crypto exchange in the world.

OTC-desk

In February 2020, Kraken launched an OTC-desk function. With an OTC-desk (Over The Counter), you can execute larger trades without any risk of “slippage”—which is what we call price movements due to large transactions. At Kraken, the minimum order size is USD 100,000, so it’s not for the small players; however, if you have trades in that size and need deep liquidity and a private service, Kraken’s OTC-desk offers deep liquidity and a private service aimed at high net-worth individuals, institutions and crypto firms that need to fill large orders efficiently. The execution and settlement services are discrete, secure and ultra-competitive.

Mobile Support

Like most other platforms out there today, Kraken is also available as a mobile app. This means that you no longer need a desktop to access the crypto trading world. You can download the app from either Apple's App Store or Google Play.

Leveraged Trading

On 4 February 2019, Kraken announced that it would now allow investors to trade crypto futures in addition to cryptocurrency. However, US-investors may not trade futures at Kraken just yet because of regulatory restrictions.

Futures

Kraken, a crypto trading platform, acquired Crypto Facilities, a leading trading platform. The price of the acquisition was undisclosed but is reportedly above USD 100,000,000 – one of the largest acquisitions in the history of crypto. After the acquisition, you can now seamlessly move funds between Kraken Exchange and Kraken futures. At Kraken you can trade with leverage up to 50x on the top five cryptos.

Deposit Methods

Kraken offers several ways to deposit money. For instance, you can pay for cryptos with Apple Pay and Google Pay (as of 21 September 2021). To purchase cryptos using Apple Pay or Google Pay, select the cryptocurrency you'd like to buy from the "Pay With" menu and enter an amount. If you don't yet have a card added, add one right from the Kraken app. Another option is to deposit USD, EUR, CAD, GBP and JPY through Etana Custody (and CHF through Bank Frick in Liechtenstein). Etana offers currency conversion for a wide range of fiat currencies. Users of the Kraken platform can wire transfer almost any fiat currency to their Etana wallet and then exchange that into one of the five major fiat currencies that the Kraken platform supports. You can also deposit and withdraw EUR via SEPA-transfers.