5 ms·

VP Product at Kraken here. Have questions on the Kraken SPDI? Add them to this thread and I'll answer over the next few days. If you want to build the SPDI wit

VP Product at Kraken here. Have questions on the Kraken SPDI? Add them to this thread and I'll answer over the next few days. If you want to build the SPDI with us -- we're actively hiring for Engineering, Product, Design and more.

seibelj 6y ago
If I get paid in crypto can I custody it with you and use it to pay bills, buy a house, etc.? Are you trying to make this like a real bank? My normal bank will cancel my account if I start wiring in large amounts of fiat that originated from a crypto exchange. Also, if I have a crypto business, can you be my crypto business banker? Thanks.
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Yes, all of those scenarios will be easier with what we are building.
  - seibelj 6y ago
    Thanks! When can I become a customer?
    - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
      You're welcome! You can sign-up for a standard Kraken account now, or wait until we announce more about the SPDI bank experience. We should have more details out before the end of the year.
      - seibelj 6y ago
        I have a Kraken account - but I am a Poloniex engineer :) but I will be happy to use your banking services in the future! Amazing work. I don’t think most people outside of crypto (and especially HN) understand the value proposition for what you are providing. This is huge!
        jeremyrwelch 6y ago
        Ha! Thanks for your work there, and glad to hear it. We are all in this together -- building a better overall financial and computing systems. More people will understand as we launch more features and products.
        switch11 6y ago
        very well put -> We are all in this together -- building a better overall financial and computing systems.
optimiz3 6y ago
Do you folks support WA yet? WA has one of the highest concentrations of engineering talent in the country.
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Are you referring to supporting customers in WA? Or hiring engineers from WA? Unfortunately our service does not currently support residents of WA. The SPDI should help with this in the future. Re: working at Kraken, we hire in all US states including WA and most countries globally. We're one of the few global companies that was already fully remote before Covid19. Any engineers in Washington state are encouraged to apply!
  - tayo42 6y ago
    Going to go way off topic for a sec... Are you guys adjusting pay based off location?
    - chriscappuccio 6y ago
      If they want to hire people then yes
    - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
      We do slightly adjust pay based on location, but most positions stay within a range regardless of your location. Our CEO Jesse and CBO Christina recorded a whole podcast on our compensation philosophy and distributed workforce approach.
      - BlueScreenDeath 6y ago
        I like Jesse more and more the longer he is around. Are you anon on here? Can you say anything about what he is like as a boss?
rahimnathwani 6y ago
Hi Jeremy! Congrats on the new role. Given that an SPDI isn't a deposit-taking license (like a traditional banking license), what building blocks will the Kraken SPDI give you, that you don't have today? Is it mainly the ability to interface with the banking system/plumbing, without being subject to a third-party's AML and risk management processes? Or something else?
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Possible to plug directly into the banking system, and also provide common savings/checking bank account experiences to customers. The key difference is in being fully reserve backed (no fractional reserves). David Kinitsky and Marco Santori from Kraken talk some of these details in a podcast called "On The Brink", if you'd like to learn more.
  - rahimnathwani 6y ago
    Podcast episode link for anyone else who's interested: https://lnns.co/RiQ2wjI8VHh https://lnns.co/RiQ2wjI8VHh
scottmsul 6y ago
Will Kraken provide bitcoin savings accounts? I'm thinking something where you deposit some BTC, it gets loaned out for several months to a year (and you're not allowed to withdraw during that time), and you get paid an interest rate denominated in BTC. Would be nice to get a positive real rate given the 21M supply cap.
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Too early to go into details, but yes there are many possible yield bearing products we could build out comparable to what you describe.
tgsovlerkhgsel 6y ago
What does this move mean for European users? Is it a no-op? Does it increase safety of fiat and/or crypto deposits, or increase e.g. the risk that you'll be forced to lock an account for months to comply with some banking laws?
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Most customers, including those in Europe, shouldn't see any noticeable change. The longterm improvements customers will see is for more/better funding options (for everyone) and new banking products (for some regions).
Karunamon 6y ago
Are you hiring for any positions in Cheyenne as a result of acquiring the license there, or is everything purely remote? The jobs site makes it look like the latter.
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Yes! We are excited to invest in Cheyenne and Wyoming. Several members of the Kraken team are moving to Cheyenne, and we will be hiring more locally. You should expect to see more job postings there over the coming year. Some of our team has also expressed interest in visiting Cheyenne to work for a period of time, even if they are not moving there full-time! We will continue to have many fully remote positions open for hiring globally (as we always have).
  - vel0city 6y ago
    That's awesome. In today's decentralized world I'd love for more companies to encourage hiring in the smaller cities of the US. It would really increase our competitiveness globally if the average US programmer wasn't trying to cover rent on a 500 sqft $2k/mo flat in San Francisco.
    - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
      Agreed!
1337biz 6y ago
Congratulations! Are there any plans for international customer bank accounts in the pipeline or is it US centric so far?
- jeremyrwelch 6y ago
  Can't go into details yet, but we do expect the SPDI setup to benefit all our global customers in various ways -- from easier funding options to totally new banking products. Stay tuned.

seibelj 6y ago

If I get paid in crypto can I custody it with you and use it to pay bills, buy a house, etc.? Are you trying to make this like a real bank? My normal bank will cancel my account if I start wiring in large amounts of fiat that originated from a crypto exchange. Also, if I have a crypto business, can you be my crypto business banker? Thanks.

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Yes, all of those scenarios will be easier with what we are building.
- seibelj 6y ago
  Thanks! When can I become a customer?
  - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
    You're welcome! You can sign-up for a standard Kraken account now, or wait until we announce more about the SPDI bank experience. We should have more details out before the end of the year.
    - seibelj 6y ago
      I have a Kraken account - but I am a Poloniex engineer :) but I will be happy to use your banking services in the future! Amazing work. I don’t think most people outside of crypto (and especially HN) understand the value proposition for what you are providing. This is huge!
      - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
        Ha! Thanks for your work there, and glad to hear it. We are all in this together -- building a better overall financial and computing systems. More people will understand as we launch more features and products.
        switch11 6y ago
        very well put -> We are all in this together -- building a better overall financial and computing systems.

optimiz3 6y ago

Do you folks support WA yet? WA has one of the highest concentrations of engineering talent in the country.

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Are you referring to supporting customers in WA? Or hiring engineers from WA? Unfortunately our service does not currently support residents of WA. The SPDI should help with this in the future. Re: working at Kraken, we hire in all US states including WA and most countries globally. We're one of the few global companies that was already fully remote before Covid19. Any engineers in Washington state are encouraged to apply!
- tayo42 6y ago
  Going to go way off topic for a sec... Are you guys adjusting pay based off location?
  - chriscappuccio 6y ago
    If they want to hire people then yes
  - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
    We do slightly adjust pay based on location, but most positions stay within a range regardless of your location. Our CEO Jesse and CBO Christina recorded a whole podcast on our compensation philosophy and distributed workforce approach.
    - BlueScreenDeath 6y ago
      I like Jesse more and more the longer he is around. Are you anon on here? Can you say anything about what he is like as a boss?

rahimnathwani 6y ago

Hi Jeremy! Congrats on the new role. Given that an SPDI isn't a deposit-taking license (like a traditional banking license), what building blocks will the Kraken SPDI give you, that you don't have today? Is it mainly the ability to interface with the banking system/plumbing, without being subject to a third-party's AML and risk management processes? Or something else?

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Possible to plug directly into the banking system, and also provide common savings/checking bank account experiences to customers. The key difference is in being fully reserve backed (no fractional reserves). David Kinitsky and Marco Santori from Kraken talk some of these details in a podcast called "On The Brink", if you'd like to learn more.
- rahimnathwani 6y ago
  Podcast episode link for anyone else who's interested: https://lnns.co/RiQ2wjI8VHh https://lnns.co/RiQ2wjI8VHh

scottmsul 6y ago

Will Kraken provide bitcoin savings accounts? I'm thinking something where you deposit some BTC, it gets loaned out for several months to a year (and you're not allowed to withdraw during that time), and you get paid an interest rate denominated in BTC. Would be nice to get a positive real rate given the 21M supply cap.

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Too early to go into details, but yes there are many possible yield bearing products we could build out comparable to what you describe.

tgsovlerkhgsel 6y ago

What does this move mean for European users? Is it a no-op? Does it increase safety of fiat and/or crypto deposits, or increase e.g. the risk that you'll be forced to lock an account for months to comply with some banking laws?

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Most customers, including those in Europe, shouldn't see any noticeable change. The longterm improvements customers will see is for more/better funding options (for everyone) and new banking products (for some regions).

Karunamon 6y ago

Are you hiring for any positions in Cheyenne as a result of acquiring the license there, or is everything purely remote? The jobs site makes it look like the latter.

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Yes! We are excited to invest in Cheyenne and Wyoming. Several members of the Kraken team are moving to Cheyenne, and we will be hiring more locally. You should expect to see more job postings there over the coming year. Some of our team has also expressed interest in visiting Cheyenne to work for a period of time, even if they are not moving there full-time! We will continue to have many fully remote positions open for hiring globally (as we always have).
- vel0city 6y ago
  That's awesome. In today's decentralized world I'd love for more companies to encourage hiring in the smaller cities of the US. It would really increase our competitiveness globally if the average US programmer wasn't trying to cover rent on a 500 sqft $2k/mo flat in San Francisco.
  - jeremyrwelch 6y ago
    Agreed!

1337biz 6y ago

Congratulations! Are there any plans for international customer bank accounts in the pipeline or is it US centric so far?

jeremyrwelch 6y ago
Can't go into details yet, but we do expect the SPDI setup to benefit all our global customers in various ways -- from easier funding options to totally new banking products. Stay tuned.