Payward Adds 24/7 Dollar Settlement With Singapore Gulf Bank

Payward, the parent company of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, has partnered with Singapore Gulf Bank to provide select institutional clients in Asia and the Gulf region with round-the-clock U.S. dollar settlement through the bank’s SGB Net network.

The integration connects Payward’s settlement operations to SGB Net, a real-time clearing network operated by the Bahrain-regulated bank. Eligible clients can settle dollar transactions instantly outside standard banking hours, according to a Monday press release.

The companies plan to expand the service to more clients and currencies. Singapore Gulf Bank will receive access to digital-asset liquidity through Payward’s Kraken Prime institutional brokerage service and plans to use Payward’s markets to price customer trades in the coming months.

The companies did not disclose how many clients will receive access initially or the transaction volume they expect to process.

Banks and financial firms are developing round-the-clock settlement systems to reduce delays linked to traditional banking hours. A consortium that includes 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.

Circle and Nomura have reportedly partnered on a service intended to provide companies in Japan with instant foreign-exchange settlement from 2027. On Sept. 21, the Bank of Korea announced a pilot project allowing foreign investors to settle won transactions outside regular banking hours.