Shakepay Vs Kraken: Which Is Better For Canadians In 2026?

How Do Shakepay And Kraken Compare, Fact By Fact?

Every row below comes from each company’s own pages and the Canadian registries, checked October 2026. Where a row has no fair winner, it says so.

What Are The Key Differences Between Shakepay And Kraken?

How Do You Fund And Cash Out Shakepay And Kraken In Canada?

Neither accepts: paypal.

Shakepay joined Interac e-Transfer as a Participant in July 2026, so e-Transfer now runs on its own connection. Bank-side sending limits and name matching still apply. Weekend timing: Not published. Fund by Interac for free, trade on Kraken Pro, and expect to pay CAD 10 to take Canadian dollars back out by e-Transfer. Wire deposits can lose a 13.74 intermediary fee. Kraken has been reported to delay new account checks at busy times.

What Does It Actually Cost To Buy On Shakepay And Kraken?

Shakepay: Published target band of 0.5% to 2.0% over the benchmark price, which may widen by up to 1.5% in adverse conditions (help article checked 2026-10-03). Kraken: Kraken Pro base tier 0.40% maker / 0.80% taker (Tier 1, USD 0 volume), checked 2026-10-03. The high end is the 1% Instant Buy fee, which is charged on top of a spread Kraken does not publish. Custom orders are 1.5%. Ranges reflect each platform’s published band, not a single quote. Bank and network fees are not included.

What Do Shakepay And Kraken Offer Beyond Buying And Selling?

Shakepay Only

• Shakepay Card (prepaid Visa): Issued by Peoples Trust Company, no annual fee, no credit check, free to get once fully verified. Cashback 1% at Base and Bright, 1.5% at Blue; foreign fee 3%, 1.5% or 0%. Limits $5,000 per transaction and day, $50,000 per month. Apple Pay and Google Pay supported.
• BLOC (bitcoin-backed line of credit): Borrow up to $50,000 against bitcoin through Shakepay Credit Inc. APR 11.5% Base, 10.5% Bright, 9.5% Blue. No fixed payments while LTV is 50% or lower. Terms and margin levels are shown in-app. Loan proceeds may not buy crypto. Margin notice 80%, liquidation 90% with a 3% fee and a CAD 100 minimum: Not verified on a primary page.
• Interest and USD: CAD interest 1.5% Base, 2% Bright, 3% Blue; savings 1.5%, 2% and 5% (Blue, first $100,000). The crypto page advertises 3.5% on USD. Rates are variable and not guaranteed.
• ShakingSats: Shake your phone once a day for sats. Cap by status: 10 sats a day at Base, up to 100 at Bright, up to 500 at Blue, growing with your streak.
• Referral: You and the friend each get $20 when the friend invests $100 in crypto within 30 days.

Kraken Only

• Kraken Pro: Order book trading with maker/taker fees from 0.40% / 0.80%, down to 0.0% / 0.10% at USD 10M monthly volume. Tiers can also be reached by holding assets on the platform (USD 20K for Tier 3).
• Staking: Flexible staking with an on-chain unbonding period carries a 20% commission. Canadians cannot stake GRT or FLR, use Opt-In Rewards, or use Babylon Bitcoin staking, and ETH2.S cannot be traded.
• Kraken+: Subscription giving zero trading fees on up to USD 10,000 (or CAD equivalent) a month in Buy, Sell and Convert, with spreads and card fees still applying. The subscription price was not retrieved.
• Recurring buys: Recurring trades are charged the 1% Instant Buy fee plus a spread.

What Happens To Your Money If Shakepay Or Kraken Fails?

Shakepay: CIPF covers the cash and USD you hold at Shakepay, advertised as up to $1 million, but crypto is explicitly not covered. Customer crypto is held in trust with Coinbase Custody (at least 80% cold) and Fireblocks and BitGo hot wallets, and Shakepay's own risk statement warns that insurance may be inadequate and points users to withdraw to a private wallet. A hack, a custodian failure or a freeze can still hit crypto balances. BLOC adds liquidation risk if bitcoin falls, and Shakepay Credit operates under time-limited exemptive relief that runs three years from April 9, 2026, not full registration.

Kraken: Kraken is a CSA Restricted Dealer, which brings regulator oversight, loss notifications and purchase caps, but its client assets are not covered by CIPF and Kraken says so. Kraken publishes third-party proof of reserves (June 2026 ratios 100.3% to 102.9% for the five largest assets), which shows assets were held at the snapshot but is not insurance, and no insurance amount is published. Residual risks are exchange hacks, an insolvency where you are an unsecured creditor, and restrictions that can force you to withdraw coins Kraken later removes for Canada.

How Are Shakepay And Kraken Treated For Tax In Canada?

Shakepay: Selling crypto, swapping it (including auto-swap), spending it with the card or repaying with it are dispositions; card cashback in bitcoin is income when received and your cost base starts at that value. Shakepay emails two CSVs (crypto and cash) but issues no tax slips, so you need Koinly or similar.

Kraken: Selling, converting one coin to another and staking rewards are taxable events. Kraken exports ledger and trade history as CSV and links to Koinly, which can produce a CRA Schedule 3 report; Kraken does not produce a CRA-ready report itself.

Selling, swapping or spending crypto is a disposition for the CRA on any platform. This is not tax advice: see my guide to crypto taxes in Canada.

Which Should You Choose, Shakepay Or Kraken?

Choose Shakepay If

• You want the simplest Interac-funded way to buy Bitcoin or Ethereum from a CIRO-registered firm.
• You want a bitcoin cashback card or a bitcoin-backed credit line in the same app.
• You will keep the account active each month to reach Bright or Blue and lower the card and loan costs.
• You do not need many coins, limit orders or Lightning.

Choose Kraken If

• You want the widest coin list available to Canadians and a real order book.
• You will use Kraken Pro rather than Instant Buy to keep trading costs near 0.4% to 0.8%.
• You value published proof of reserves over a CIRO dealer.

How Do Shakepay And Kraken Compare On Fees?

Kraken Pro starts at 0.40% maker and 0.80% taker and falls with volume. Kraken's Instant Buy is 1% plus a spread. Shakepay is commission-free with a target spread of 0.5% to 2.0%, which can widen by up to 1.5% more. On $1,000 of Bitcoin, a Kraken Pro taker order at the entry tier costs $8.00 in fees, while Shakepay's target range is $5.00 to $20.00. A calm day favours Shakepay, a busy trading month favours Kraken Pro.

Which Is Better For Funding And Withdrawing CAD?

Shakepay takes free Interac e-Transfer deposits from CAD 5 to CAD 10,000 and free wires of CAD 10,000 or more (1 to 2 working days). Withdrawals by Interac e-Transfer (CAD 5 to 10,000) and by wire are free as well.

Kraken takes free Interac e-Transfer deposits with a CAD 5 minimum and limits of CAD 10,000 per transaction and per day, CAD 30,000 per week and CAD 100,000 per month. Domestic wires are free, though a CAD 13.74 intermediary bank fee is noted. Debit card deposits cost CAD 0.25 plus 3.75%. Interac withdrawals cost CAD 10.

Both take free Interac e-Transfer deposits. Shakepay is free to withdraw by Interac as well, while Kraken charges CAD 10. Kraken's Interac limits are CAD 10,000 per transaction and per day, CAD 30,000 per week and CAD 100,000 per month.

Which Has More Coins?

Shakepay offers three assets: Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDC, which converts 1:1 to USD. There is no crypto staking. Its interest products, such as Earn 3.5% on USD and Shakepay Interest, are not staking, and there is no leverage trading. The Bitcoin-backed credit line from Shakepay Credit Inc. is a loan product.

Kraken publishes no official Canadian coin count. Take its public trading-pair list, remove the tickers its own Canada restrictions bar, and you land at about 498, which is a very large shelf. Staking works for Canadians with exceptions, including no Opt-in Rewards, and Canadian clients cannot trade margin or derivatives.

Kraken lists about 498 tickers, derived from its public list. Shakepay lists Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDC.

Which Is Safer?

Shakepay Inc. has been a CIRO investment dealer member since January 8, 2025, is registered with the AMF and provincial regulators, and is a FINTRAC-registered MSB. USD funds are protected up to $1M by CIPF. Crypto is not covered by CIPF.

Payward Canada Inc. (Kraken) is a CSA Restricted Dealer under a decision dated April 1, 2025, and a FINTRAC-registered MSB. It is not a CIRO member, though press reports say it intends to apply. Kraken's Proof of Reserves snapshot for June 30, 2026 shows reserve ratios of 102.9% on BTC, 100.5% on ETH and 100.6% on SOL. Canadian clients also face a net purchase limit of CAD 30,000 over a rolling 12 months on assets other than BTC, ETH, LTC and BCH (CAD 100,000 for eligible investors), outside Alberta, BC, Manitoba, Quebec and Saskatchewan.

Shakepay is a CIRO investment dealer member, and Kraken is a CSA Restricted Dealer and not a CIRO member. Both are FINTRAC-registered. Kraken publishes Proof of Reserves (June 30, 2026: BTC 102.9%, ETH 100.5%, SOL 100.6%), and Kraken's Canadian clients face a CAD 30,000 net purchase limit on most altcoins. Shakepay's USD funds are CIPF-protected up to $1M, and crypto is uncovered at both.

Which App Is Easier To Use?

Shakepay's iOS app is rated 4.62 across 24,349 Canadian ratings, and Google Play shows 4.1 from 13.5K reviews. With three assets and a spread instead of fee menus, there is very little to learn.

Kraken's iOS app is rated 4.62 from 5,662 Canadian ratings, and Google Play shows 4.2 from 55.1K global reviews. Instant Buy keeps the first purchase simple, and Kraken Pro is where the order book, charts and lower fee schedule live.

Both iOS apps score 4.62, with Shakepay on 24,349 ratings and Kraken on 5,662. Google Play shows 4.1 for Shakepay and 4.2 for Kraken.

What Are The Pros And Cons Of Shakepay And Kraken?

Shakepay: Pros And Cons

Kraken: Pros And Cons

Who Should Choose Shakepay, And Who Should Choose Kraken?

Choose Shakepay If

Choose Shakepay if you want Bitcoin and Ethereum with no learning curve, free CAD in and out and a CIRO-supervised dealer.

Visit Shakepay Read My Shakepay Review

Choose Kraken If

Choose Kraken if you want hundreds of coins, lower Pro fees and proof of reserves, and you are fine with a CAD 10 Interac withdrawal fee.

Visit Kraken Read My Kraken Review

What Else Should You Know Before You Deposit?

Neither platform should be your long-term vault. Crypto on an exchange is not covered by CIPF at either one, so coins you plan to hold for years belong in a wallet you control, and only the amount you are about to trade needs to sit on the platform.

Tax follows you wherever you trade. The CRA treats crypto as a commodity, so selling, swapping or spending it can trigger tax, and whether the result is business income or a capital gain depends on how you use it. Export your transaction history from both apps and keep it.

Finally, prices and limits move. The fees, limits and coin counts above come from each platform's own pages as checked in October 2026, so look at the quote in the order preview before you confirm any trade.

The full ranking sits on the best crypto exchanges in Canada page. Not sure which one fits you? The quiz narrows it down in a minute.