From Cointelegraph · By Zoltan Vardai
Kraken parent company Payward has partnered with Singapore Gulf Bank (SGB) to enable 24/7 US dollar settlement for select institutional clients in Asia and the Gulf region.
Payward has integrated SGB Net, the Bahrain-regulated bank’s real-time clearing network, allowing those clients to settle transactions instantly. The companies plan to expand the service to more clients and currencies, according to a Monday press release.
The bank will also access digital asset liquidity through Payward’s prime brokerage service, Kraken Prime, and use Payward’s markets to price customer trades in the coming months.
Banks and financial firms are developing similar services to speed up settlement and extend it beyond business hours. A consortium including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Barclays plans to launch a tokenized deposit network operated by The Clearing House in the first half of 2027, enabling 24/7 settlement. In Japan, Circle and Nomura reportedly partnered to offer companies instant foreign exchange settlement from 2027.
On Sept. 21, the Bank of Korea unveiled a pilot project to let foreign investors settle won transactions outside regular banking hours.
Related: Nasdaq invests $100M in Kraken parent at $21B valuation: Report