SoFi Technologies (SOFI) and Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, have reached an agreement that connects a bank-issued stablecoin and a round-the-clock dollar settlement network with one of the largest digital-asset trading venues in the United States.
The deal, announced Thursday, brings SoFiUSD onto Kraken’s platform for retail, professional, and institutional customers while giving Kraken’s institutional and business clients access to the SoFi Exchange Network, or SEN, for continuous U.S. dollar settlement outside conventional banking hours. SoFi will also route eligible digital-asset orders through Kraken Prime, the exchange’s institutional execution arm, as an additional liquidity source.
“The financial system should not shut down when markets stay open,” SoFi CEO Anthony Noto said in a statement.
Shares of SoFi climbed 2.5% following the announcement, with investors responding to the direct link between a federally regulated bank and a major crypto trading platform.
How the integration works
The partnership has two primary components. On the execution side, SoFi will use Kraken Prime’s smart order routing technology, which evaluates pricing and market depth across multiple supported venues in real time and directs orders to wherever they are most likely to achieve the best fill. That means SoFi’s crypto customers could see improved trade pricing instead of relying on a single order book.
On the settlement side, Payward will join SEN, giving Kraken’s institutional and business customers the ability to clear and settle dollar transactions 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Traditional bank rails typically pause on weekends and overnight, creating friction for firms that trade digital assets continuously.
SoFiUSD sits at the center of the arrangement. Issued by SoFi Bank, the stablecoin is backed by reserves held in cash and short-term U.S. Treasurys and was launched in 2026 for payments and settlement. Traders can exchange SoFiUSD one-for-one for U.S. dollars at any time. By listing the token on Kraken, SoFi gains distribution across one of the crypto industry’s most established exchange ecosystems.
The companies indicated that qualified custody services could be added as the relationship matures, a point of particular relevance for institutional operators that typically evaluate custody and settlement as linked requirements.
ComponentWhat it doesSoFiUSD on KrakenDollar-backed stablecoin listed for retail, professional, and institutional usersKraken Prime routingSoFi orders executed via smart order routing across multiple venuesSoFi Exchange Network24/7 U.S. dollar settlement for Kraken institutional and business clientsBusiness bankingPayward gains access to SoFi’s business banking servicesFuture custodyQualified custody services may be added as the partnership expands
Note: Details reflect the announced scope of the partnership; custody services remain subject to future expansion.
A broader push into traditional finance
The SoFi deal is the latest in a series of moves by Payward and Kraken to build deeper ties with regulated financial infrastructure.
Earlier this week, London Stock Exchange Group reportedly partnered with Payward to offer tokenized versions of leading U.K. equities through LSE 24, a new 24/5 trading venue expected to launch in 2027. In August, Kraken added round-the-clock exposure to the S&P 500 through its funded trading program, with commodities expected to follow.
The company has also expanded into tokenized public markets through xStocks, a platform developed by Backed Finance, which Kraken acquired in early 2026. Through xStocks, Kraken has offered eligible users exposure to shares tied to SpaceX and Jersey Mike’s IPO activity, including direct share allocations in some cases.
In March, Kraken Financial secured access to the Federal Reserve’s payment systems, and days later Payward formed a tokenized-equities partnership with Nasdaq. SoFi, meanwhile, expanded SoFiUSD to the Solana blockchain in May.
Timing and market context
The partnership arrives as Payward prepares for a potential public listing. The company confidentially submitted a draft registration statement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in November 2025, though reports indicate the earliest possible listing has been pushed to the second quarter of 2027.
SoFi’s path back to crypto has been deliberate. The company ended an earlier crypto offering in 2023, then announced plans to return in June 2025 after regulatory conditions shifted. It began rolling out trading for as many as 30 crypto assets in November 2025, allowing customers to fund purchases directly from SoFi checking and savings accounts. SoFiUSD followed in December as a tool for trading, payments, and business transfers.
SoFi now counts 15.8 million members, giving Kraken Prime access to a substantial retail base while SoFi gains institutional-grade execution infrastructure. For Payward, the deal reinforces a strategy of positioning Kraken not merely as an exchange but as a bridge between banking-grade settlement networks and crypto trading infrastructure.
According to TipRanks consensus data, SoFi stock carries a Hold rating based on seven Buys, six Holds, and three Sells assigned over the past three months. The average price target of $20.57 implies roughly 13% upside potential from current levels.
The practical question for market participants is whether combinations of this kind—multi-venue order routing paired with continuous dollar settlement and bank-issued stablecoins—become the default operating model for large exchanges and financial platforms seeking to reduce operational friction in digital-asset markets.