Kraken’s newly launched US spot margin product allows eligible retail traders to access up to 10x leverage through a CFTC-registered entity.
The launch focused attention on leverage availability, borrowing costs, and access for retail traders. Less attention was given to how Kraken values the collateral backing those positions.
According to Kraken’s published collateral schedule, assets posted as collateral are not always counted at their full market value. The exchange applies asset-specific haircuts that reduce the value recognized for margin purposes.
Bitcoin, Ethereum, EURC and USDG receive a 1% haircut, meaning $10,000 of collateral is valued at $9,900.
XRP receives a 5% haircut, reducing $10,000 to $9,500.
Solana, Dogecoin, Litecoin, Cardano and Polkadot receive 7.5% haircuts, leaving $9,250 of recognized collateral value from a $10,000 deposit.
Many assets, including AAVE, WIF, HYPE, SHIB and PEPE, receive 20% haircuts.
Tether Gold (XAUT) receives the largest haircut currently listed at 40%, reducing $10,000 of collateral to $6,000.
| Asset | Haircut | Effective Collateral Value on $10,000 |
|---|---|---|
| BTC | 1% | $9,900 |
| ETH | 1% | $9,900 |
| XRP | 5% | $9,500 |
| SOL | 7.5% | $9,250 |
| DOGE | 7.5% | $9,250 |
| AAVE | 20% | $8,000 |
| WIF | 20% | $8,000 |
| HYPE | 20% | $8,000 |
| XAUT | 40% | $6,000 |
Source: Kraken
The difference means that two traders depositing the same dollar amount can begin with materially different levels of collateral support before either trade moves.
A trader posting $10,000 in Bitcoin begins with $9,900 of recognized collateral value.
A trader posting $10,000 in Tether Gold begins with $6,000.
This matters because collateral value forms part of the buffer supporting a leveraged position.
Learn more: How collateral reduces liquidation risk
While Kraken’s maximum leverage remains the same, the amount of recognized collateral backing that leverage varies significantly depending on the asset used.
Kraken’s margin launch follows Payward’s acquisition of Bitnomial and forms part of a broader expansion of regulated crypto derivatives and leveraged trading products in the United States.
For traders evaluating the new product, the leverage limit is only one part of the risk framework.
The collateral schedule determines how much of a deposited asset the platform actually recognizes when supporting a margin position.
The result is straightforward: on Kraken’s new US margin product, two traders can deposit the same amount, use the same leverage, and start with different effective collateral value solely because the exchange applies different haircuts to the assets they choose to post.
This report is published under Leverage.Trading’s Risk-First Education Framework , an independent learning system built to help traders quantify and manage risk before trading.
