Retail & Fintech · Crypto exchange · Regulatory action
Kraken (Payward, Inc.)
Headline
VERIFIED: the SEC's 2023 suit alleging Kraken ran an unregistered securities exchange was dismissed WITH PREJUDICE by joint stipulation in March 2025.
Not independently verified. Verification status: Unverified - heuristic first draft. Publish state: draft unverified.
VERIFIED: the SEC's 2023 suit alleging Kraken ran an unregistered securities exchange was dismissed WITH PREJUDICE by joint stipulation in March 2025. The SEC said this was a policy decision, 'not on any assessment of the merits'. Earlier matters stand: a $30M SEC settlement in Feb 2023 that ended U.S. staking (no admission), a $362K OFAC sanctions settlement in Nov 2022, and an A$8M Australian court penalty in Aug 2024 for wrongly offering a credit product to about 1,100 customers. For consumers, the terms also matter: fees can change 'without notice', unpaid balances accrue 18% interest, and there is no arbitration opt-out.
- Severity
- Evidence tierUnassigned
- Claims confirmed
- Last verified2026-10-16
Primary source. www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-26278 — Unverified - heuristic first draft.
Terms
Arbitration
Yes. Confidential JAMS arbitration before a single arbitrator in San Francisco (Sec. 14). A class, class-arbitration and representative-action waiver applies in arbitration or court. California law. 30-day written dispute notice and informal resolution required first.
Data sharing
Privacy notice (last updated Sept 30, 2026) says Kraken 'does not sell personal information to any third parties for monetary consideration'. Yet its CCPA section says it 'may have shared identifiers with third party analytics providers, advertising partners, and ad networks' in the past 12 months. Under its GLBA notice it shares transaction and creditworthiness data with affiliates; consumers can limit only affiliate marketing and creditworthiness sharing. Referral partners get a first name, surname initial and onboarding milestones; affiliate partners get pseudonymized trading data. AML records are kept 5+ years.
Fees and billing
Global Terms (last updated Oct 6, 2026) Sec. 6: fees and spreads are set in a Fee Schedule that Kraken may change 'at any time, without notice'. Unpaid amounts accrue the greater of 18% per year or the legal maximum, plus a collection fee of 18% or the legal maximum.
Contacts
Privacy contact. Privacy hub request form (kraken.com/legal/privacy-hub#request); (888) 871-2573. No email listed.
Legal notice. Payward Interactive, Inc., 106 E. Lincoln Way, 4th Floor, Cheyenne, WY 82001 (Global Terms preamble)
Mailing address. Not recorded.
Evidence
No claims have been itemized for this row yet.
Sources
| Source | Claim | Tier | Status | Quote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| regulator · 2025-03-27 www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-26278 | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “not on any assessment of the merits of the claims alleged in the action” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| encyclopedia (lead only) · 2026-10-16 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kraken_(cryptocurrency_exchange) | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “The SEC agreed to drop the lawsuit in March 2025.” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| company terms · 2026-10-06 www.kraken.com/legal/global-terms | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “you and Kraken won't commence against the other a class action, class arbitration or representative action or proceeding” Quote basis: not recorded. |
| company policy · 2026-09-30 www.kraken.com/legal/privacy | whole row | Unassigned | confirmed | “Kraken does not sell personal information to any third parties for monetary consideration” Quote basis: not recorded. |
Source vault
Link status: Candidate - not yet fetched
| Document | Last fetch | |
|---|---|---|
| Privacy policy https://www.kraken.com/legal/privacy | Not fetched yet | NOT CONFIRMED |
| Terms of service https://www.kraken.com/legal/global-terms | Not fetched yet | NOT CONFIRMED |
| Website https://www.kraken.com | Not fetched yet | — |
| Primary source https://www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-26278 Verification: Unverified - heuristic first draft | Not fetched yet | — |
Enforcement
No enforcement actions are linked to this row.
State statute
Headquarters on file: CA. Provisions of CCPA/CPRA on file:
| Provision | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Right to Deletion Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.105 | hard | source |
| Right to Correction Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.106 | hard | source |
| Right to Know / Access Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.110 | hard | source |
| Right to Limit Use of Sensitive Personal Information Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.121; Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, § 7027 | hard | source |
| Right to Data Portability Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.130(a)(3)(B)(iii) | hard | source |
| Privacy Policy / Privacy Notice Requirements Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.130(a)(5); Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, § 7011 | hard | source |
| Sensitive Personal Information — Categories Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.140(ae) | hard | source |
| Service Provider and Contractor Contract Requirements Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.140(ag); Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, § 7051 | hard | source |
| Applicability Threshold (2025 CPI-Adjusted) Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.140(d) | threshold | source |
| Privacy Risk Assessment — Mandatory for High-Risk Processing (Eff. Jan. 1, 2026) Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.185(a)(15); Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, §§ 7150-7157 | hard | source |
| Right to Opt Out of Sale or Sharing Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1798.120, 1798.135 | hard | source |
| Sale vs. Sharing Distinction Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1798.140(ad), 1798.140(ah) | hard | source |
| Enforcement — CPPA and AG; Civil Penalties (2025 CPI-Adjusted) Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1798.155, 1798.199.90; Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17206 | hard | source |
| Notice at Collection Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, § 7012 | hard | source |
| Cybersecurity Audit — Annual Independent Audit Requirement (Eff. Jan. 1, 2026) Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, §§ 7120-7124 | hard | source |
| Automated Decision-Making Technology (ADMT) — Notice, Opt-Out, and Access Rights Cal. Code Regs. tit. 11, §§ 7200-7222; Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.185(a)(16) | hard | source |