Kraken report reveals a 39% increase in global law enforcement and regulatory agency requests in 2024

Kraken’s 2024 Transparency Report has revealed that global law enforcement and regulatory agency requests to the exchange in 2024 rose by about 39%. U.S. enforcement agencies made the most requests to the exchange globally, 28.6% of all requests and 1,951 out of the 6,826 requests made in 2024. 

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued the most requests, accounting for 641 out of 1,951 requests made by the country’s agencies. Other law enforcement agencies that requested information from Kraken included DHS-ICE, the IRS, the police department, the DA’s Office, the DEA, USSS, USAO, the U.S. SEC, and the Sheriff’s Office. 

The U.S. SEC accounted for 37.25% of all requests made to Kraken from regulatory agencies in the country. State Regulatory Agency, the CFTC, OFAC, and other agencies accounted for 34.31%, 26.47%, 0.98%, and 0.98% of the requests, respectively. The commission still accounted for only 1.9% of the total requests made by law enforcement and regulatory agencies in the U.S. to the exchange. 

The transparency report also indicated that the most common requests the agencies made were summoning and subpoenas, accounting for 1,339 of the total requests. Other requests included consent orders, warrants, court orders, police requests, and others, accounting for 55, 53, 13, 9, and 5, respectively. 

Other countries, including Germany, Denmark, the UK, Australia, France, and Italy, also requested data from the exchange. The data requested for over 10,000 Kraken user accounts still was majorly focused on U.S. clients, with the exchange complying with 57% of the requests. Kraken confirmed that the exchange followed strict policies to ensure customer privacy while complying with regulatory requests. 

Kraken’s transparency indicates its dedication to compliance

🚨 JUST IN: @krakenfx, a leading crypto exchange, reported a 39% spike in regulatory data requests in 2024, with the SEC topping the list at 37.25%, followed by state regulators at 34.31% and the CFTC at 26.47%. The FBI and SEC are among the key U.S. agencies seeking user data. pic.twitter.com/47Dea0Kvl0

— Crypto Jessica (@CryptoJessXBT) February 20, 2025

Kraken highlighted that releasing the transparency reports showed its dedication to legal and regulatory compliance ‘in a way that is consistent with law enforcement.’ The exchange further insisted that regulatory compliance and transparency to its users aligned with its mission to provide financial freedom, promote permissionless access to financial investments, and accelerate global crypto-asset adoption. 

The exchange doubled down on transparency after the FTX saga in 2022, introducing the Proof of Reserves feature to allow users to monitor the exchange’s solvency. Kraken’s co-founder Jesse Powell spoke about the FTX collapse then, assuring users that the exchange remained unaffected by the saga. The exchange further revealed its history of maintaining transparency, especially through its introduction of audits in 2014. 

Kraken has also previously revealed to users that the exchange would continue to maintain high standards of transparency in offering consumers financial freedom. The exchange’s audits notably allow users to independently verify Kraken’s credibility. Kraken also has an ISO 27001 certification, which indicates the exchange’s investment in cybersecurity to protect user funds. 

“Kraken’s co-founders have always prioritized security — it forms the very foundation on which this exchange is built.”

Nick Percoco, Kraken’s Chief Security Officer

Kraken’s Chief Security Officer, Nick Percoco, revealed after the certification that Kraken’s co-founders considered security to be one of the greatest foundations on which the exchange was built. Percoco also stated that Kraken had invested over a decade into building security teams, policies, and measures while working toward global expansion. 

U.S. crypto regulations to ease under Trump’s administration

The increasing requests in 2024 have been speculated as part of regulators’ crackdown on crypto firms and holders. In the past few years, the U.S. SEC sued several exchanges, including Kraken, Coinbase, and Huobi, for illegally offering crypto services in the U.S. Crypto firms viewed the crackdown as a step by the commission to dampen crypto’s progress in the country. 

Crypto’s influential figures, including Wall Street companies like JPMorgan, expect that the regulations will loosen under President Trump’s administration. A February 7 New York Post report confirmed that the Federal Reserve and the U.S. OCC would likely ease digital asset regulations under the new administration. 

The report further highlighted that financial institutions like JPMorgan and Bank of America were more optimistic about more legal clarity around the asset class. Trump notably promised during his campaign last year to create a more comprehensive legal framework and reduce the regulatory scrutiny by regulators, including the U.S. SEC.

Cryptopolitan Academy: FREE Web3 Resume Cheat Sheet - Download Now