How to read these grades: each is derived from published, checkable disclosures — proof-of-reserves attestations, public regulatory registers, disclosed insurance funds and the documented incident record — using the weighted rubric below. Where an exchange does not disclose something, we mark it unverified rather than assume it. These are not audits and not investment advice; they reflect what was published as of our last review.
Kraken
Kraken holds a Wyoming SPDI charter, CFTC and SEC registrations and two EU MiCA authorisations, and has published Merkle-tree proof of reserves verified by Armanino LLP since February 2022; it discloses no insurance-fund figure.
BySafety DeskSenior Exchange Safety Editor
Our Kraken review
Kraken is the highest grade we publish, at A-, and the only exchange in this corpus whose reserve reports carry an outside accountant's name. It is not a clean sweep: two of the five factors are gaps in what Kraken tells you, rather than findings against it.
What checks out
Merkle-tree proof of reserves has been verified by third-party accountant Armanino LLP since February 2022 — most recently finalised on 30 June 2025 across BTC, ETH, SOL, USDC, USDT, XRP and ADA. An attestation is still not a full financial audit, but an independent firm putting its name to the numbers is the difference between "we say we hold it" and "somebody else looked". The licence book is unusually deep for crypto: a Wyoming Special Purpose Depository Institution charter, CFTC DCM, DCO and FCM registrations, SEC broker-dealer and RIA registrations, and two EU MiCA CASP authorisations. Kraken has operated since 2011 with no reported breach that cost customers funds.
Where the evidence stops
The cold/hot storage split is not disclosed, and we could not confirm it from a primary source. Neither is any insurance fund: our research found no SAFU-equivalent named cover, which is a disclosure gap rather than proof that none exists. The regulatory record also carries two settlements — $1.25m with the CFTC in September 2021, and $30m with the SEC in February 2023 over the U.S. staking-as-a-service programme, with on-chain U.S. staking relaunched in January 2025.
How to read the grade
An A- is the best available on this rubric today, not a clean bill of health. It means the two hardest things to fake — independently attested reserves and a licence trail on public registers — are both present, and that what happens to your funds if the exchange is attacked is still something Kraken has not put in writing.
Grade breakdown
Every KripZen grade comes from the same five weighted checks. Here is how Kraken scores on each.
- Proof of reservesWeight 30%
Merkle-tree proof of reserves verified by third-party accountant Armanino LLP since February 2022, most recently finalised 30 June 2025 across BTC, ETH, SOL, USDC, USDT, XRP and ADA.
What this means → meets this factor - CustodyWeight 25%
Cold/hot storage split is not disclosed; we could not confirm it from a primary source.
What this means → partial or unverified - RegulationWeight 20%
Wyoming Special Purpose Depository Institution charter, CFTC DCM/DCO/FCM and SEC broker-dealer/RIA registrations, and two EU MiCA CASP authorisations; settled with the CFTC for $1.25m in September 2021 and with the SEC for $30m in February 2023 over its U.S. staking-as-a-service programme, relaunching on-chain U.S. staking in January 2025.
What this means → meets this factor - InsuranceWeight 15%
No insurance-fund figure is publicly disclosed. Our research found no SAFU-equivalent named fund, which is a disclosure gap rather than confirmation that none exists.
partial or unverified - Incident historyWeight 10%
No confirmed major security incident found in our research; Kraken has operated since 2011 with no reported breach costing customers funds.
meets this factor