BNY Mellon has gone live in the US with its digital asset platform as a custody manager allowing its clients for the first time to hold and transfer bitcoin and ether alongside other assets.
In a statement on 11 October, America's oldest bank with a 238-year legacy described the move as a "milestone" which reinforced its commitment as a "trusted provider of both traditional and digital asset servicing".
BNY Mellon formed an enterprise Digital Assets Unit in 2021 to develop solutions for digital asset technology, with plans to launch the industry's first multi-asset platform that bridges digital and traditional asset custody.
Robin Vince, chief executive officer and president at BNY Mellon, said: "Touching more than 20% of the world's investable assets, BNY Mellon has the scale to reimagine financial markets through blockchain technology and digital assets.
"We are excited to help drive the financial industry forward as we begin the next chapter in our innovation journey."
A recent survey sponsored by BNY Mellon had highlighted already significant institutional demand for a resilient, scalable financial infrastructure built to accommodate both traditional and digital assets, it said.
According to the survey, almost all institutional investors (91%) are interested in investing in tokenized products.
Additionally, 41% of institutional investors hold cryptocurrency in their portfolio today, with an additional 15% planning to hold digital assets in their portfolios within the next two to five years.
"With Digital Asset Custody, we continue our journey of trust and innovation into the evolving digital assets space, while embracing leading technology and collaborating with fintechs," said Roman Regelman, CEO of Securities Services & Digital at BNY Mellon.
BNY Mellon further said it tapped digital asset technology specialists Fireblocks and Chainalysis to integrate their technology in order to meet the present and future security and compliance needs of clients across the digital asset space.
"As the world's largest custodian, BNY Mellon is the natural provider to create a safe and secure Digital Asset Custody Platform for institutional clients," said Caroline Butler, CEO of Custody Services at BNY Mellon. "We will continue to innovate, embrace new technology and work closely with clients to address their evolving needs."
