Trump order puts crypto firms in line for Fed payment rails
Kraken gives crypto firms a working model Krakens approval gives the industry a practical example of how expanded access could work. In March, the Kansas City Fed granted Kraken Financial a limited-purpose account that allows access to core payment rails used for high-value dollar settlement. The account could help the exchange process institutional deposits and withdrawals more efficiently, particularly for clients moving large balances between trading venues, custodians, and banking partners. The arrangement is limited. Kraken does not have access to all services available to insured banks, and the account reportedly excludes benefits such as interest on reserves and access to Fed credit. Those limits are designed to reduce risk to the central bank while giving a crypto firm a narrower connection to payment infrastructure. That model could become the template for other digital asset companies. A restricted account would allow firms to move dollars through Fed payment systems while withholding privileges that regulators and banks consider more sensitive, including overdrafts, reserve interest, or emergency lending access. Caitlin Long, CEO of Custodia Bank, welcomed Trumps intervention, saying the order recognized a continuing problem at the Fed with blocking legally eligible institutions from the US payment system. Custodia has spent years fighting for access after the Fed denied