Kraken has begun rolling out its artificial intelligence-powered trading tools, but the initial scale is minimal. According to a recent regulatory filing, Kraken Adviser LLC reported just $377 in assets under management across nine non-discretionary accounts, with no discretionary accounts. This modest starting point underscores the company's focus on user conversion rather than immediate asset accumulation.
The crypto exchange is revamping its consumer app to emphasize "agentic trading," where software monitors market conditions and executes trades to meet user-defined goals. This strategy aims to bridge the gap between retail and professional traders, as Kraken Chief Data Officer Kamo Asatryan explained to CNBC. "AI is going to help everyday people respond to market conditions the way our most active traders respond," he said.
Kraken's parent company, Payward, reported first-quarter adjusted revenue of $507 million, up 3% year-over-year, with adjusted EBITDA of $18 million. The platform has 6.1 million funded accounts, $40 billion in assets, and $357 billion in quarterly transaction volume. Co-CEO Arjun Sethi emphasized the long-term vision, stating, "We're not optimizing for today's EBITDA."
The filing reveals a nuanced approach to trade authority. While public communications suggest every trade requires client approval, the adviser brochure mentions an "Autonomous Mode" that allows the AI agent to handle portfolio building, monitoring, and rebalancing without individual sign-offs. The launch is more about engagement than typical robo-adviser fees. Kraken does not charge advisory fees; instead, it earns revenue through transaction charges, payment for order flow, and securities lending.
Kraken is not the first to enter this space. Coinbase launched Coinbase for Agents in June, enabling third-party agents to trade crypto and send payments. Robinhood already offers third-party agent integration. Kraken hopes that embedding its agent directly into a goal-based retail app will simplify the user experience.
The company has been expanding its traditional finance offerings, launching commission-free trading for over 11,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs in April 2025. Oppenheimer analyst Owen Lau described this as "another step taken by Kraken to become a full-service app" covering both traditional finance and crypto.
However, risks remain. Kraken's brochure warns that large language models can make mistakes or produce unsubstantiated outputs. The AI agent's interpretation of client mandates may drift, leading to poor trades, tax issues, or losses, potentially attracting regulatory scrutiny.
Market context shows total crypto market value at $2.28 trillion as of July 10, up 1.57% on the week, with Bitcoin rising 3.94%. Coinbase shares fell about 3.9% from July 2 to July 10, while Robinhood dropped roughly 0.7%. Upcoming U.S. macro data, including June CPI on July 14 and retail sales on July 15, could impact crypto and growth stocks.
Investors will monitor funded accounts, platform assets, and transaction volume. The real test for Kraken lies in converting its minimal starting assets into steady revenue without encouraging risky trading or accumulating compliance costs.
