Kraken's Unified Wallet (UW) consolidates Spot, Margin and Derivatives into a single, flexible balance, simplifying the trading experience. Supporting over 40 cryptocurrencies as collateral, this account-level margin system allows unrealized profits from margin and derivatives to be used as margin for trading different product types. The UW features two margin modes, Isolated and Cross Margin, both catering to different risk preferences and trading strategies, thus optimizing risk management and trading flexibility.
Clients can manually upgrade to the Unified Wallet via Kraken Pro Web or Kraken Pro App.
Single balance for Spot, Margin and Derivatives (Multi-M): No need to transfer funds between wallets to use collateral.
Unified collateral weights: The same weights apply whether assets are used for Margin or Derivatives.
Cross-margin efficiency: UP&L from Spot Margin or Derivatives can be reused across instruments.
Isolated positions still supported: You can continue to use isolated margin for Derivatives when needed.
One-click activation and deactivation: Easily turn Unified Wallet on or off in your Account Settings as long as you have no open positions or orders.
In Cross Margin mode (default), the UW leverages the entire asset value of the account, including unrealized profits, to maintain and initiate derivative positions. This method enhances capital efficiency by allowing profits and losses from different derivatives to offset each other and by calculating margins at the account level rather than per position.
Additionally, Isolated Margin mode is available for Multi-M derivatives contracts. This mode allows traders to segregate margins for individual positions, thereby limiting potential trading losses to the amounts specifically allocated per position.
The below table shows the various account margin modes supported by UTW.
| Margin Mode | Benefits | Supported Products |
|---|---|---|
| Isolated Mode | Individual margin calculations for positions. Active orders in one position do not impact others, minimizing potential loss to the margin of that specific position. | Multi-M Contracts |
| Cross Margin Mode | Profits and losses across different products can offset each other, allowing profits to be used to open new positions. | Spot Margin Multi-M Derivatives |
Note: You can switch back to your current separate Spot and Derivatives Wallets after enabling.
When enabling Unified Wallet, all balances from your Derivatives wallet are moved into your Unified wallet.
To switch back to separate wallets, you must first close all Derivatives positions and orders. No balances are automatically moved back into your Derivatives wallet.
Coin-M Derivatives balances are not included in Unified Wallet and must still be managed separately.
On Kraken Web (pro.kraken.com)
Go to Settings.
Select Account.
Under Trading platform, toggle on Unified Wallet.
On the Kraken Pro App:
Go to Account.
Select Preferences.
Enable Unified Wallet.
Once enabled, all eligible balances are immediately combined into your Unified Wallet.
Close all active Derivatives positions and orders.
Return to your Account settings and toggle off Unified Wallet.
Your wallets will be separated again, but balances remain in Main. You must manually transfer funds back into your Derivatives wallet to open new positions there.
If the equity of USD and other whitelisted assets* under the Unified Trading Wallet would fall below zero due to derivatives trades and/or unrealized losses, the system will automatically start charging interest on the net negative equity of these assets > $30,000. If the equity of these assets breaches -$250,000 other collateral currencies will be automatically converted such that the negative equity of the assets is reduced to -$50,000.
Under Cross Margin mode, the margin calculations depend on the adjusted equity value of the account. Each collateral asset is valued according to its specific collateral value ratio. This ratio primarily reflects the liquidity conditions of the asset.
The total margin balance in USD value of your Unified Wallet is based on the following calculation:
Total Asset Value (in USD) = Sum (Asset N × Corresponding USD Index Price × Corresponding Collateral Value Ratio + Asset (N+1) × Corresponding USD Index Price × Corresponding Collateral Value Ratio + ….)
| Asset | Collateral Value Ratio |
|---|---|
| USD | 100% |
| EUR | 100% |
| BTC | 99% |
| ETH | 99% |
To learn more about the collateral value ratio of different assets, visit this page.
Notes:
— Parameters may be modified based on market conditions. Kraken will notify users in advance.
— Any asset balance on the collateral list will be used to calculate the total account equity.
Example
Assuming Trader A currently has 1,000 USD, 1,000 EUR, and 0.1 BTC in their Unified Trading Wallet.
| Assets | USD Index price | Collateral Value Ratio | USD equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 1 | 100% | 1,000 x 1 x 100% = 1,000 USD |
| EUR | 1.11 USD | 100% | 1,000 x 1.11 x 100% = 1,110 USD |
| BTC | 106,639.81 USD | 99% | 0.1 x 106,639.81 x 99% ≈ 10,557.34119 |
Total Margin Balance = 1,000 + 1,110 + 10,557.34119 ≈ 12667.34 USD
The total amount that can be used as a margin in your account is 12667.34 USD.
The UW calculates all risks and assets in USD.
Under Cross Margin mode, positions can be maintained as long as the account's maintenance margin to equity ratio is below 100%. Liquidation is triggered when maintenance margin to equity ratio reaches or exceeds 100%.
Under Isolated Margin mode, the UW segregates the margin used for an individual position from the account balance using the collateral with the highest value ratio. Liquidation is triggered when the Mark Price reaches or exceeds Liquidation Price.
For additional details on margin and liquidation policies, refer to Trading Rules: Liquidation Process (Unified Wallet)