How your USD account works: your account details and where your money is held

Last updated: June 24, 2026

Your Krak USD account comes with an account number and a routing number so you can receive and send US dollars. This guide explains what those details are, where your money is actually held, how it’s protected, and what happens to your funds in situations such as an account restriction, closure, or insolvency.

Your account and routing number is a virtual address

When you’re set up to receive USD, you’re given an account number and a routing number. These let people and businesses send USD to your Krak account — for example, your employer paying your salary.

These details are a virtual address that routes incoming USD to your Krak account. They are not a separate personal bank account that you hold at a bank, and money does not stay at that address — incoming funds are passed straight through to where your balance is held (explained below).

It can help to think of it like a forwarding address: people can send money to it, but it isn’t a vault where money sits.

Where your money is held

Krak is operated by Payward Interactive, Inc. (“PWI”). PWI is a licensed money transmitter — not a bank. Our partner to provide this service is Citibank, N.A., which operates under a U.S. national bank charter issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

How your money is protected

Your money is handled in a way that’s designed to keep it separate from Kraken’s own funds:

Held separately: customer funds are kept apart from PWI’s own operating money.
Safeguarded: PWI safeguards customer funds in line with the requirements that apply to licensed money transmitters in the US.
Held on your behalf: the account is structured so that customer funds are held for customers and are not Kraken’s property to use in its own business.

Your Krak USD balance is not a bank deposit, and is not the same as money held in an account in your own name at a bank.

What happens to your money in different situations

If your account is restricted

Sometimes we may need to restrict your account — for example, while we look into a security concern. A restriction can temporarily limit your ability to move funds. While a restriction is in place, your balance continues to be held as described above.

If your account is closed

If your account is closed, we’ll work with you to return your available balance, subject to completing any checks we’re required to carry out and unless we’re prevented from doing so by law (for example, a court order).

In the event of insolvency

In the event of insolvency, customer funds are held separately from Kraken’s own money and on customers’ behalf. This structure is intended to help protect customer funds, though how funds are treated in any given situation depends on the circumstances and the law that applies at the time.

You can find the full details in our Terms of Service.

Quick answers

Question	Answer
Is my Krak USD account a bank account?	No. It’s a money-transmission account. The account and routing number are a virtual address for receiving USD, not a separate bank account in your name.
Can I use my account and routing number for direct deposit?	Yes — you can share them to receive USD by ACH, RTP, and FedNow networks.
Where is my money actually held?	In an account at a bank, in PWI’s name, on behalf of customers. Your in-app balance is your share.
Is my balance FDIC insured?	No. Your Krak USD balance is not a bank deposit and is not FDIC insured.

Learn more

ACH transfers explained — how US bank transfers work.
Bank Transfers: Sending and Receiving — how to send and receive on Krak.

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