Analysis
The deal would give a crypto-native company its own European bank for deposits, loans and cards, adding to the U.S. and Irish licenses it already holds. Payward says it plans to build deposit interest, lending and card products on Saldo's license, but the company has not said which products or countries would come first, and the purchase still needs regulatory approval.
The agreement
Payward, the financial infrastructure company behind the Kraken exchange, announced on October 14, 2026 that it signed a definitive agreement to acquire Saldo Finance Oy, a Finnish holding company [1]. Saldo Finance owns Saldo Bank UAB, which Payward describes as a digital-first specialized bank licensed in Lithuania [1].
Payward did not disclose a price. It said closing is expected in 2027, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, and that integration work and the approval process are both underway [1][2].
What Saldo does
According to Payward, Saldo takes retail term deposits in each of its markets: Lithuania, Finland, Sweden and Germany. It makes consumer loans in Lithuania, Finland and Sweden, and small and midsize business loans in Lithuania and Finland [1]. It has launched a credit card in Finland, with a Sweden launch expected in 2027, and supplies lending technology to fintech partners in Finland and Germany [1].
Payward says the license also carries a passport into the Netherlands, which it counts as a fifth European market. That count includes the Netherlands passport alongside the four countries where Saldo operates today [1][2]. Passporting is the EU system that lets a bank licensed in one member state offer services in others.
What Payward says it will build
Payward says that after closing, and subject to approvals, it plans to offer interest on deposits held with it, secured and unsecured business loans, consumer lending and credit cards. It also plans banking-as-a-service for partners, including card issuance, lending infrastructure and access to the euro SEPA payments system [1].
Arjun Sethi, Payward's co-CEO, said: "We are starting in the EU, and the ambition is global" [1]. Jarkko Mäensivu, president of Saldo Bank, said: "A banking license is only as valuable as what you build on top of it" [1]. The company has not given a timeline for products for Kraken customers or said which countries would launch first [2].
Payward's other licenses
Payward cites a limited-purpose Federal Reserve master account and an e-money institution license from the Central Bank of Ireland, along with more than $2 billion in loans it has originated [1]. crypto.news reported that Kraken Financial, a Wyoming-chartered bank, received the Fed master account in March 2026 and that Kraken won authorization under the EU's crypto-asset regulation, MiCA, through the Central Bank of Ireland in June 2025 [2].
The same report said Payward has filed an application with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish Payward National Trust Company, a separate effort from the Saldo purchase [2].
Who supervises the bank
crypto.news reported that Saldo received a specialized banking license from the European Central Bank in October 2021, and that Saldo's website names the European Central Bank as its licensing authority and the Bank of Lithuania as its regulator. The report said the license is not new and was not obtained through the deal [2]. Payward's release does not name the supervisor that must approve the acquisition [1].
What remains uncertain
Deal terms come from Payward's own announcement and a single trade-press report. The price, the approving regulators, the products for Kraken customers and the countries where they would launch have not been disclosed. The regulator details come from crypto.news's reading of Saldo's website and were not confirmed with the Bank of Lithuania or the European Central Bank. Plans for deposits, lending and cards are Payward's stated intentions and depend on closing and regulatory approval.