Wells Fargo is negotiating with Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, to become a supplier of cryptocurrency trading liquidity to the U.S. financial services firm, according to people with direct knowledge of the discussions.
The talks represent a deepening of Wells Fargo’s crypto involvement through an established digital asset infrastructure provider. Payward operates Kraken, which offers banks technology to integrate crypto trading into their own platforms, alongside a broader suite of services spanning spot crypto, derivatives, tokenized equities, custody, staking, and traditional securities through its Payward Services division.
Wells Fargo has already signaled institutional appetite for digital assets. The bank offers spot bitcoin ETFs to eligible wealth clients, has announced plans for blockchain-based deposits, and joined a consortium developing a dollar stablecoin. The potential Payward partnership would add a direct liquidity supply channel to that infrastructure.
Payward, based in Wyoming, has strengthened its institutional positioning in recent months. Nasdaq agreed in September 2025 to invest $100 million in the company, validating the exchange operator’s role as a gateway for traditional finance institutions seeking crypto exposure. That capital commitment came as a friendlier U.S. regulatory environment under President Donald Trump’s administration is driving major lenders to view established digital asset companies as commercial partners.
The shift marks a contrast to the banking squeeze that crypto firms faced in prior years. In February 2025, Nathan McCauley, CEO of custody provider Anchorage Digital, testified to the Senate Banking Committee about the scale of institutional rejection, citing that 40 banks had rejected Anchorage Digital’s account requests despite the firm holding a federal bank charter subsidiary. Earlier in 2026, Wells Fargo hired Mark Gracia, a former Citi banker, signaling the bank’s intent to build crypto capability in-house.
Payward is also in separate ongoing discussions with BNY, the custody banking firm, according to people with direct knowledge. The scope, value, and timeline of the Wells Fargo negotiations were not specified.
Wells Fargo’s broader crypto infrastructure bets include backing Elliptic, a crypto compliance firm, and Talos, a trading technology provider. These investments, combined with the Payward liquidity discussions, reflect the bank’s multi-pronged approach to integrating digital asset services into its wealth and institutional business lines.
