Key Takeaways:
Kraken became the first US centralized exchange to natively support Tempo, a Layer 1 blockchain built for stablecoin payments, enabling deposits and withdrawals of USDT0 and USDC.e with settlement in roughly 0.5 seconds.
"Tempo was designed for real-world payments at scale, with dedicated payment lanes that guarantee low fees even during peak activity," a Kraken spokesperson said.
Users pay network fees directly in dollar-denominated stablecoins, with no separate gas token required. Tempo was incubated by Paradigm and Stripe and shaped with input from fintechs, banks, and commerce platforms. The network processes settlement in roughly 0.5 seconds with no re-orgs, making it suited for cross-border payments, payroll, and institutional money movement.
The integration signals growing demand for specialized blockchain infrastructure purpose-built for payments rather than general-purpose trading. As stablecoins increasingly function as settlement rails — USDC accounted for a majority of stablecoin transaction value during the first half of 2026, per adjusted on-chain data — exchanges that support fast, low-cost on-ramps may capture a growing share of institutional volume. Hyundai earlier this year moved a stablecoin-based cross-border treasury transfer into production on Avalanche, cutting transfer times to about seven minutes from three to four hours via traditional banking.
Kraken's move also pressures rival exchanges to add Tempo support or risk losing access to a payments corridor that fintechs and neobanks are beginning to use. Tempo's stablecoin-native gas model removes a friction point that has limited non-crypto-native users from interacting with blockchain-based payments.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
