Kraken wants to be a federal bank. The SEC agrees.
Published: May 8, 2026
Duration: 8:18
Kraken just applied for a federal bank charter. SEC Chair Atkins signals new rules for on-chain markets. Fear & Greed dropped 9 points to 38. TradFi is building the rails while sentiment quietly falls apart.
Today's key developments:
• Kraken's parent Payward just applied for a national trust bank charter with the OCC, putting it in the same regulatory category as BNY Mellon and JPMorgan's trust arms.
• SEC Chair Atkins signaled the agency is weighing new rulemaking for on-chain market structures and AI-driven finance, marking the clearest pivot yet from enforcement-first to rules-first crypto policy.
• The ECB's Christine Lagarde warned...
Today's key developments:
• Kraken's parent Payward just applied for a national trust bank charter with the OCC, putting it in the same regulatory category as BNY Mellon and JPMorgan's trust arms.
• SEC Chair Atkins signaled the agency is weighing new rulemaking for on-chain market structures and AI-driven finance, marking the clearest pivot yet from enforcement-first to rules-first crypto policy.
• The ECB's Christine Lagarde warned...