Standard Chartered led crypto custody venture Zodia Custody gets FCA approval

Zodia Custody, an institutional-grade crypto asset custody solution provider has announced it has got the approval of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), i.e., the platform can now provide commercial services as a crypto asset business.

Zodia Custody is a product by Standard Chartered’s SC Ventures, and Northern Trust, a leading asset servicing provider. It serves the requirements of crypto-asset custody services to institutional investors looking for custodian reserves with high standards of traditional custody services, meanwhile maintaining the flexibility required to adapt to the evolving crypto-asset market.

Zodia is one of nine crypto-asset businesses that have been approved by the FCA to provide commercial services under the regulatory guidelines of the UK’s Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Transfer of Funds Regulations 2017. Crypto assets services were added to the above in January 2020 and makes it mandatory for all firms providing crypto-asset services in the UK to register with the FCA.

Increase Approachability

Zodia Custody aims to increase the accessibility of the crypto-asset market for a wider institutional audience, by aligning crypto-asset services with the traditional assets market. The demand for crypto asset custody services has risen since 2020, with the rapidly increasing number of institutional asset owners, family offices, and asset managers around the world investing in the emerging crypto asset sphere.

“We believe crypto assets as an asset class is here to stay. We set up Zodia Custody with the clear goal of serving institutional investors who want to invest in crypto assets in a sustainable, safe, and responsible way. Our aspiration is to lift standards, grow the ecosystem and help a nascent industry mature, becoming more acceptable to institutional investors and ultimately society at large.”, said Alex Manson of SC Ventures.

Cross-Border fund transfers

Zodia Custody is currently providing custody services for the two crypto assets, Bitcoin and Ethereum, however, the company is working towards expansion of their portfolio. Standard Chartered, Zodia’s parent company, has invested in core technology provider Metaco and is also collaborating with the Bank of Thailand and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to expand into distributed ledger interoperability for cross-border fund transfers.