- The Krak Card is Kraken’s Europe-first Mastercard debit card, launched in November 2025 for UK and EU residents.
- It runs on Kraken’s Irish MiCA licence (Payward Europe), so the regulatory side is clean and register-verifiable.
- Cashback is 0.5% to 2%, tiered by your balance across Kraken products, paid instantly in euro, sterling or BTC with no cap.
- No monthly or annual fee, plus a virtual IBAN and salary deposits. The catch is a variable conversion spread on crypto-funded spending and 0% cashback below a €200 balance.
What the Krak Card is
Krak is Kraken’s payments app, and the Krak Card is the Mastercard debit card that sits on top of it. Kraken launched the app in June 2025 and added the card in November 2025 for UK and EU residents, with a stainless-steel metal version following in March 2026. Unlike most exchange cards, this one was built for Europe first rather than bolted on after a US launch.
You fund the card from your Kraken balance and spend in real time. It converts crypto to euro or sterling at the point of sale, so you can pay with more than 400 assets, and Krak lets you split a single payment across several of them. For a fuller picture of how it compares to the rest of the market, see our guide to the best crypto cards in Europe after MiCA.
Licensing: the part that matters after MiCA
Kraken’s EU crypto services run through Payward Europe Solutions Limited, which the Central Bank of Ireland authorised as a MiCA crypto-asset service provider in June 2025. That entity is in the ESMA register, and the licence passports across the EEA. The card itself is issued by Monavate (its Lithuanian entity in the EEA, and the FCA-authorised UK entity for British users), which handles the e-money side.
In plain terms, both halves are covered: the crypto conversion sits under a MiCA licence, and the euros on the card sit under an e-money licence. That is exactly the setup the MiCA rules are designed to produce, and it is why Krak clears the first filter for a European card in 2026.
Krak Card cashback tiers
Kraken restructured the rewards in March 2026. Cashback is now tiered by your 30-day average balance across Krak, Kraken and Kraken Pro, and it pays instantly in euro, sterling or BTC with no monthly cap.
| Tier | 30-day balance | Cashback |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | €0 | 0% |
| Light | €200 | 0.5% |
| Pro | €1,000 | 1% |
| Elite | €10,000 | 1.5% |
| Max | €50,000 | 2% |
Travel booked through Krak Concierge can earn up to 4%, and new customers get a temporary welcome boost to 2%. ATM withdrawals, refunds, transfers and purchases under €0.49 don’t earn. The metal card needs the €50,000 Max tier, so it is aimed at heavier balances.
Fees and the catch
- No monthly or annual fee.
- Krak charges 0% on transactions, FX and ATM withdrawals from its side, though third-party ATM operators may still add their own fee.
- The real cost is a variable conversion spread when you spend across assets, so paying from crypto is never quite free even when the fee line says zero.
- Cashback is 0% until your balance reaches €200, and the headline 2% needs €50,000 parked across Kraken products.
The pattern here is the same one we flag on most exchange cards, including the Bybit card and the Crypto.com Visa: “zero fees” describes the sticker, while the conversion spread is where the money actually goes. If you spend mostly from a euro balance rather than from crypto, you sidestep most of it.
Banking features beyond the card
Krak is trying to be a spending account, not just a card. EU users get a virtual IBAN and can receive their salary into the app, with the rollout reaching countries like Latvia, Greece, Croatia and Hungary through 2026 alongside a 1% salary-match promo. Balances can earn up to 3.6% APY, and Krak Vaults route into audited DeFi for higher yields. That mix of card, IBAN and yield is what separates it from a plain exchange card.
Krak Card at a glance
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Issuer / licence | Kraken (Payward Europe), MiCA CASP via Central Bank of Ireland; card by Monavate |
| Network | Mastercard debit (virtual, physical, metal) |
| Availability | UK and EU residents |
| Cashback | 0.5% to 2% by balance, instant, in EUR/GBP/BTC, no cap |
| Fees | No monthly/annual fee; variable conversion spread on crypto spend |
| Extras | Virtual IBAN, salary deposits, up to 3.6% APY, Krak Vaults |
| Custody | Custodial (Kraken/Krak balance) |
Pros and cons
✅ Pros
- Clean Irish MiCA licence, EU-first product
- Instant cashback in euro, sterling or BTC with no cap
- No monthly or annual fee
- Virtual IBAN, salary deposits and in-app yield
- Spend and split across 400+ assets
❌ Cons
- 0% cashback below a €200 balance
- Top 2% rate needs €50,000 across Kraken products
- Variable conversion spread on crypto-funded spending
- Support is young; early Trustpilot reviews cite slow, automated responses
Who the Krak Card is for
Krak suits an EU or UK user who already trusts Kraken and wants a licensed, bank-like account with real cashback and an IBAN. It is a weaker fit if you keep only a small balance, since you need €200 just to start earning and €50,000 to reach the top rate. Privacy-focused users who want to keep their own keys should look at a self-custody option like Gnosis Pay instead.
Frequently asked questions
Editorial note: card fees, cashback tiers and licensing details change often. Everything here was checked against Kraken and regulator sources at the time of writing; confirm the current terms in the app before you apply.
Related reading
Compare crypto cards
- 10 Best Crypto Cards in Europe After MiCA (where Krak ranks against the field)
- Best crypto cards for US users (the American picks)
- Top crypto Mastercards (Krak runs on Mastercard)
Other exchange cards
- Crypto.com Visa card review (the biggest exchange card)
- Bybit card review (another MiCA-licensed EU card)
- Nexo card review (credit and debit in one)
Regulation
- Top 10 MiCA-licensed crypto exchanges (the exchange side of the same rulebook)
- Stablecoin crypto cards (how MiCA reshaped card top-ups)
