Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has won a $22 million arbitration award against former auditor Mazars USA and asked the Delaware Court of Chancery to enter judgment on the award, according to a letter published Tuesday by co-CEO Arjun Sethi.
Payward said Mazars withdrew from the exchange’s nearly completed 2022 audit despite finding no fraud, raising no concerns about management’s integrity and reporting no disagreements with the company.
“An audit is not a favor. It is oxygen,” Sethi wrote, arguing that independent audits are essential for obtaining banking services, licenses and other business relationships.
Sethi said Mazars’ resignation was part of what he described as Operation Chokepoint 2.0, a broader campaign that pressured banks, auditors and other institutions to cut ties with lawful crypto companies.
The letter cited a series of regulatory developments from 2023 as evidence supporting that claim. These included joint guidance from US banking regulators, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s since-rescinded Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 121 and the collapse of crypto-focused banking networks Silvergate SEN and Signature’s Signet.
Sethi also called on Congress to pass the CLARITY Act, arguing that a comprehensive market structure framework would provide clearer rules for digital asset companies and reduce reliance on regulatory enforcement.
Kraken executives reflect on auditor dispute
Kraken co-CEO Dave Ripley said on X Tuesday that “this story is worth surfacing despite its PTSD-inducing nature,” adding that “only a fraction of the stories from that era have ever been told.”
Ripley described the $22 million arbitration award as compensation for financial harm caused by what he called a coordinated campaign against the crypto industry.
Meanwhile, US regulators continue to address concerns around crypto-related debanking. In February, the Federal Reserve sought public feedback on a proposal to formally remove “reputation risk” from bank supervision, following its 2025 directive to stop pressuring banks to close customer accounts over reputational concerns. Critics said the move could help bring an end to Operation Chokepoint 2.0.
Source: Dave Ripley
Kraken was founded in 2011 and has been widely expected to pursue an initial public offering. In November 2025, the company said it had confidentially submitted a draft Form S-1 registration statement to the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
However, it was reported in May that its public debut may not come until 2027, citing weaker crypto market conditions and the exchange’s ongoing cost-cutting efforts.
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