Standard Chartered has revealed plans to offer enterprise-grade digital asset custody services in Dubai via its subsidiary, Zodia Custody, pending regulatory approval.
Barely three months after reaching a final agreement with Japan’s SBI Digital Asset Holdings to set up a crypto custody platform in the region, British multinational banking giant Standard Chartered is set to offer the same service in crypto-friendly Dubai to institutional investors.
According to the sources, Standard Chartered aims to start offering cryptocurrency custody services in the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) once it receives regulatory approval from regional regulators.
The 54-year-old financial institution has reportedly signed a memorandum of understanding with the Dubai International Financial Centre. If all goes as planned, Zodia Custody, a subsidiary of Standard Chartered that announced plans to roll out its earnings product to institutional cryptocurrency holders last year, will be in charge of the proposed custody platform.
Balanced organizational approach
In contrast to jurisdictions such as the US, where major regulators have not drafted clear and enforceable digital asset legislation, authorities in the UAE have taken a more flexible and liberal approach towards regulating cryptocurrencies and blockchain.
The UAE’s embrace of innovative technologies such as Web 3 is fast, making it a hotbed for cryptocurrency market participants. To date, several Bitcoin (BTC)-related companies, including Crypto.com, ByBit, Binance, and others, have obtained regulatory licenses from Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) to operate in the city.
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Commenting on the bank’s decision to launch a digital asset custody solution in Dubai, Bill Winters, CEO of Standard Chartered said: advertiser that the bank sees digital assets as the future of financial services and that the UAE is positioning itself at the forefront of the Web3 revolution with its “balanced approach” to cryptocurrency adoption and financial regulation, making the region the ideal destination for the bank’s cryptocurrency custody product.