About Kraken — Security & Trust

If this is your first time using cryptocurrency, you may naturally have questions such as:

“What is Kraken?”
“Is Kraken a legitimate cryptocurrency platform?”
“Is it safe to purchase and send USDT through Kraken?”

These are reasonable questions.

We encourage every customer to independently research any financial or cryptocurrency platform before depositing money or purchasing cryptocurrency.

What Is Kraken?

Kraken is one of the longest-established major cryptocurrency exchanges in the world.

Kraken was founded in 2011 and launched its cryptocurrency trading platform in 2013.

The platform provides services that allow customers to buy, sell, hold and transfer digital assets such as:

• USDT
• USDC
• Bitcoin (BTC)
• Ethereum (ETH)
• and many other cryptocurrencies

Kraken operates independently from us.

It is not a payment website created or controlled by our company.

Kraken’s history, regulatory information, security practices and company background can all be independently researched through public sources.

Why Do We Recommend Kraken?

For customers in supported countries, Kraken provides a relatively straightforward way to purchase cryptocurrency using traditional payment methods.

Depending on your country and account, available funding methods may include:

• Bank Transfer
• ACH
• SEPA
• Wire Transfer
• Debit / Credit Card
• Apple Pay / Google Pay
• Other locally supported methods

Availability varies by country.

The basic process is:

Your Local Currency

↓

Kraken

↓

Purchase USDT

↓

USDT Arrives in Your Kraken Account

↓

You Review the Payment Information

↓

You Send USDT Yourself

Your cryptocurrency is first credited to your own Kraken account.

You remain in control of your account and decide when to make the final transfer.

Kraken Is Independent From Us

This is very important.

Kraken is NOT our payment website.

We do not own Kraken.

We do not operate Kraken.

We cannot access your Kraken account.

We cannot control the funds inside your Kraken account.

Our customer service will NEVER ask you for:

• Your Kraken password
• Your email password
• Your 2FA code
• Your Passkey
• Your Master Key
• Your private key
• Your recovery / seed phrase

Your Kraken account should always remain under your own control.

Our customer service will only provide the information required to complete your order, such as:

Payment Amount + Cryptocurrency + Receiving Address + Supported Blockchain Network

The final transaction is always reviewed and confirmed by you.

How Does Kraken Protect Customer Accounts?

Kraken uses multiple layers of security designed to protect customer accounts, cryptocurrency and personal information.

These include:

✓ Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

✓ Passkeys / FIDO2 Security Keys

✓ Global Settings Lock (GSL)

✓ Device Management

✓ Data Encryption

✓ Cold and Hot Wallet Security Infrastructure

✓ Continuous Security Monitoring

✓ Bug Bounty Program

Kraken recommends enabling strong authentication methods such as Passkeys and 2FA to help prevent unauthorized account access.

ISO 27001 & SOC 2

Kraken has obtained ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification for its information-security management system.

ISO/IEC 27001 is an internationally recognized standard for managing information-security risks.

Kraken has also completed a SOC 2, Type 1 examination.

These certifications and examinations do not mean that a platform can never experience a security incident.

However, they provide independent evidence that Kraken has established formal information-security controls and processes.

Proof of Reserves

One of Kraken’s most important transparency features is its Proof of Reserves (PoR) program.

Kraken was an early adopter of Proof of Reserves and has been conducting this type of verification for many years.

Kraken periodically works with an independent accounting firm to verify that covered customer cryptocurrency balances are backed by assets controlled by Kraken at the time of the verification.

The process uses cryptographic verification, including Merkle Tree technology.

This allows eligible customers to independently verify that their own balances were included in the Proof of Reserves snapshot without publicly revealing their personal account information.

1:1+ Proof of Reserves

Kraken’s Proof of Reserves does more than simply publish cryptocurrency wallet addresses.

The verification considers covered customer liabilities and compares them with assets controlled by Kraken.

For example, Kraken’s Proof of Reserves dated December 31, 2025 reported that covered client assets were backed 1:1 or greater.

The report included major cryptocurrencies such as:

BTC

ETH

SOL

USDT

USDC

XRP

ADA

Most importantly, customers can independently verify whether their eligible account balances were included in the Proof of Reserves snapshot.

Proof of Reserves is not a guarantee that a cryptocurrency exchange can never experience financial or operational problems.

However, it provides an additional level of transparency that customers can independently verify.

Regulatory Information

Kraken operates through different regulated entities depending on the customer’s jurisdiction.

For example, Kraken states that its U.S. entity maintains registration as a Money Services Business (MSB) with FinCEN.

Kraken Financial also operates as a Wyoming-chartered Special Purpose Depository Institution (SPDI) for certain eligible custody services.

Kraken additionally publishes jurisdiction-specific licensing and regulatory information for regions including:

• United States
• Canada
• United Kingdom
• European Economic Area
• Australia

The exact Kraken entity and services available to you depend on your country of residence.

Are Kraken Cryptocurrency Balances Insured?

This point is important.

Cryptocurrency held in a standard Kraken exchange account should NOT be assumed to have the same government deposit insurance protection as money held in a traditional bank account.

Kraken explicitly states that digital assets and Kraken accounts are generally not protected by:

FDIC

or

SIPC

in the United States, or equivalent deposit-protection organizations elsewhere.

This is why we do not describe Kraken — or any cryptocurrency exchange — as completely risk-free.

Is Kraken Completely Risk-Free?

No.

No cryptocurrency exchange, bank or payment platform should be described as completely risk-free.

Customers remain responsible for protecting their own account credentials.

Cryptocurrency transactions also have an important characteristic:

Blockchain transactions are generally irreversible.

If cryptocurrency is sent to the wrong address or through an incompatible blockchain network, recovering the funds may be difficult or impossible.

Before making a payment, always verify:

✓ Cryptocurrency

✓ Amount

✓ Receiving Address

✓ Blockchain Network

Never make a cryptocurrency transfer simply because someone is pressuring you to complete the transaction quickly.

Take your time and verify the information first.

You Don’t Have to Trust Our Description

This is one of the most important points.

We do not expect you to use Kraken simply because we recommend it.

Kraken has been operating for more than a decade and has a substantial amount of publicly available information.

Before using Kraken, we encourage you to research it independently.

You can check:

✓ Kraken Official Website

✓ Kraken Security Center

✓ Kraken Proof of Reserves

✓ Kraken Regulatory Information

✓ Wikipedia

✓ Google

✓ Independent financial and news sources

Research the platform yourself and only proceed when you are comfortable using it.

Public Information & Independent Verification

1. Kraken Official Website

https://www.kraken.com/

Official Kraken website and account platform.

2. Kraken Security

https://www.kraken.com/features/security

Information about Kraken’s security infrastructure, Proof of Reserves, cold-storage architecture and information-security controls.

3. Kraken Proof of Reserves

https://www.kraken.com/proof-of-reserves

Learn how Kraken’s Proof of Reserves works and how customers can independently verify eligible balances.

4. Kraken Regulatory & Licensing Information

https://support.kraken.com/articles/where-is-kraken-licensed-or-regulated

Information about Kraken’s registrations and regulatory status in different countries.

5. Wikipedia — Kraken

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kraken_(company)

Independent public information about Kraken’s history and development.

6. Google

Search:

“Kraken cryptocurrency exchange”

https://www.google.com/search?q=Kraken+cryptocurrency+exchange

You can independently review news, company information, regulatory history and other third-party sources.