Zodia Custody, a crypto custody service established by Standard Chartered, raised $36M in a Series A funding round with participation from Northern Trust and SBI Holdings, along with SC Ventures.
The British banking behemoth Standard Chartered established Zodia Custody, a cryptocurrency custody service, in late 2020 and raised US$36 million in a Series A fundraising round.
Northern Trust Corporation, a financial services provider based in Chicago, and SBI Holdings, a financial services provider based in Japan, both participated in the round. The Standard Chartered venture arm, SC Ventures, also took part in the exercise.
According to CoinDesk, the company will enhance Interchange, its settlement solution created to safeguard digital assets exchanged on cryptocurrency exchanges, and expand its token coverage using the fresh capital injection.
Zodia Custody announced on LinkedIn that they see their recent investment as a vote of confidence in their team, technology, and vision for the future of digital assets. The company remains committed to delivering top-notch solutions to its clients and fostering industry innovation while upholding its standards.
Three months ago, Zodia Custody partnered with SBI Holding’s division for digital assets to offer crypto asset custody services to Japanese institutional investors. Now, more money has become available. According to CoinDesk, SBI Digital Asset Holdings, the cryptocurrency division of SBI Holding, owns a majority (51% of the company), with Zodia Custody owning the remaining 49%.
The company is still attempting to obtain a license from the Japanese Financial Services Agency, though. It also needs the nation’s approval for antitrust and foreign direct investment.
Crypto Exchange Launched by Zodia Markets
After obtaining a mandated crypto asset registration from the UK Financial Conduct Authority, Zodia Markets, Standard Chartered’s institution-first digital asset marketplace, has started its institutional crypto exchange and brokerage operation.
Zodia Markets, the first legal cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong, was created in 2021 as a result of a collaboration between SC Ventures and BC Technology Group, the parent company of OSL. The platform provides FIX application programming interface (API) access for cryptocurrency trading combined with enterprise-grade execution capabilities for institutional investors.
