Citi said Tuesday that it will debut a Bitcoin custody service later this year for institutional investors, adding the offering to its Custody+ product. The bank said the setup will let clients hold both traditional assets and Bitcoin within one framework instead of relying on separate systems.
The bank had first announced plans for a digital asset custody service last year. At that time, Citi said it had already been developing the product for several years. According to Bitcoin Magazine, Citi is the latest U.S. bank to deepen its digital asset push as legislation has become more favorable and regulators in the U.S. have taken a more crypto-friendly approach.
Custody+ combines traditional assets and Bitcoin in one operating framework
Citi said Custody+ is built so clients can process every asset servicing transaction through a single flow, rather than being tied to one standardized custody workflow.
Chris Cox, head of Investor Services at Citi, said in a statement: 「Custody+ is a clear example of this investment as we build infrastructure to eliminate latency and drag for institutional investor clients.」
The bank said clients will have continuous, near-instant visibility and execution across servicing, settlement, FX, cash, and data. Citi added that clients will also have the flexibility to plug in digital assets or build their own offerings on top of Citi’s rails.
The launch sits alongside Citi’s wider blockchain business
Citi said the new custody service will run in parallel with its broader blockchain offerings, including Citi Token Services, which supports real-time cross-border payments using tokenized deposits.
The report also said that since last year, Citi has been working with other major banks to explore issuing a stablecoin product. The banks named were Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, and Bank of America.
Jane Fraser comments on the Clarity Act
Speaking last week about the Clarity Act, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser said the bank was a leader in digital assets. She also said the legislation still needed some improvements, but that the bank wanted a good bill to pass.
The Clarity Act is intended to define which tokens qualify as securities and which qualify as commodities. Bitcoin Magazine described it as the latest piece of pro-crypto legislation. Lawmakers are scheduled to vote on the bill in September.
The article first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and was written by Mathew Di Salvo.