DEX Trading FAQ

DEX trading lets you buy and sell tokens that aren’t listed on the Kraken exchange — directly from the Kraken App. It’s an embedded experience that gives you access to long-tail and newly launched tokens on decentralized exchanges (DEXs), using your existing Kraken balance, without having to worry about bridging, gas fees, or external wallet connections.

DEX trading is currently supported on the Solana blockchain via Jupiter. Users may trade tokens from Jupiter's VRFD token list - a curated set of assets that have met Juptier’s DEX verification standards (legitimate metadata, sufficient liquidity, no obvious red flags). Kraken does not evaluate individual DEX tokens for suitability, regulatory status, investment merit, or quality. Additional chains may be added in the future based on demand.

Inclusion on the Jupiter verified list is not an endorsement, recommendation, due-diligence assessment, or any form of securities or legal review by Kraken. Always do your own research before trading.

DEX trading and your regular Kraken account are different in nature. DEX tokens are self-custodial, held in an embedded wallet powered by Privy where Kraken does not control your private keys and trade against decentralized liquidity pools. DEX tokens are not listed on, custodied by, or reviewed by Kraken. The Kraken App keeps the two clearly separated and labelled throughout, so you always know which type of asset you’re looking at. DEX trades are market orders only.

DEX trading is currently available to selected users in Egypt, Panama, Peru, Dominican Republic, and Mexico, with more geos available in the future.

DEX trading is an app-only feature. You can only view your DEX balances on Kraken Web.

No wallet setup is required. The first time you place an DEX trade, a non-custodial wallet is created for you automatically and is reused for all subsequent trades — you do not manage seed phrases, keys, or gas fees. Before your first DEX trade, you’ll be asked to review and accept a separate set of Terms of Service that applies specifically to DEX trading, in addition to your existing Kraken Terms.

Yes. DEX trading is only available to verified Kraken users. If you haven’t completed identity verification yet, you’ll be prompted to do so before you can place a trade.

Open the Kraken App and select the DEX token you want to trade. DEX tokens are distinguishable from Kraken-listed tokens via a small icon on the bottom right hand side, or via the DEX labelling on the asset page. Tap Buy and enter the amount. The order summary shows the estimated tokens you’ll receive, total fees, and the guaranteed minimum amount before you confirm. When you tap Buy, you are giving a single instruction that authorises both the trade and the associated movement of funds between your Kraken balance and your DEX wallet. Trades will typically settle in less than a minute.

Open the token in your portfolio, tap Sell, and confirm the order. As with buying, tapping Sell is a single user instruction that authorises both the DEX swap and the return of proceeds to your Kraken balance. The same guaranteed-minimum amount appears before confirmation.

If a trade fails to execute, your funds are returned to your Kraken balance. Orders that need user input enter a clear "Needs Attention" state in the app with instructions for how to retry or accept an updated price.

You buy DEX tokens using USDC. When you place a trade, your USDC is moved from your Kraken account to your DEX wallet, then used to execute the swap. This happens automatically — you don’t need to do anything manually.

DEX trades typically complete in under 60 seconds. During periods of high network activity, it may take a little longer. If your trade is still pending after a few minutes, check the Activity section for the latest status.

If a token is removed from the available list, you’ll move to sell-only for that asset — meaning you can sell your existing holdings but won’t be able to buy more.

Your DEX token balances appear in your Kraken portfolio alongside your other assets. They’re clearly marked so you can tell them apart from assets held in your standard Kraken account. Your total balance shown in the app includes both.

Each trade carries a 1% Kraken technology fee — a flat platform-access fee for using the DEX trading service, not a commission on the asset traded. In addition, blockchain-related costs apply:

The complete fee summary, including the guaranteed minimum amount you’ll receive, is shown on the order summary screen before you confirm any trade.

A $10 minimum trade size applies to all DEX trades. There is no fixed maximum, but available liquidity in the DEX pools naturally limits the size of any single trade; the order summary will reflect the price impact for larger orders.

DEX prices are quoted live from Jupiter, the leading Solana DEX aggregator, which routes your trade across multiple liquidity pools to find the best available price. Because pool prices can move between quote and execution, a 3% slippage cap is applied: if the price moves beyond that tolerance before your trade settles, the order is cancelled and your funds returned.

Not currently. DEX trading uses market orders only, and the slippage tolerance is set automatically at 3%. You can specify how much you want to spend, but you can’t set a target price or adjust slippage manually.

When you place your first DEX trade, a personal, non-custodial wallet is created for you in the background — there’s no app to download, no seed phrase to manage, and your Kraken login is the only access path you need to remember. The wallet is powered by Privy. Kraken does not hold or control the private keys to your wallet, and cannot move your funds without your direct authorization. Any failed or cancelled trade returns your funds to your Kraken balance.

DEX tokens can only be bought and sold via the Kraken App, they cannot be deposited or withdrawn to external addresses. Any external assets sent to the embedded wallet from outside of Kraken will be held in the wallet but will not be available to trade in the app; only tokens bought through the DEX trading flow can be traded.

DEX trading doesn’t currently support direct withdrawals or deposits. If you want to use your wallet independently, you can export your private key from your account settings and import it into a compatible external wallet app.