Standard Chartered announced plans to offer digital-asset custody services in Singapore for selected cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and tokenized real-world assets, subject to regulatory requirements.
The service will target institutional clients and accredited investor corporate clients, marking an expansion of the bank's custody business to Singapore, one of Asia's major financial centers. The offering will operate within Standard Chartered's financing and securities-services business rather than as a retail product.
"Secure and regulated custody is a critical foundation of the digital asset ecosystem," said Ole Matthiessen, Standard Chartered's global head of transaction services and digital assets. "As client demand continues to grow, we will continue investing in our digital assets capabilities across key financial centers."
The bank did not specify which assets the service will support or provide a launch timeline.
Expanding Digital Asset Infrastructure
Standard Chartered has been building its digital asset business through Zodia Custody, its custody arm. In May, the bank agreed to acquire the remaining stake in Zodia Custody, which it founded with Northern Trust. Last month, the bank began offering institutional spot bitcoin and ether trading through its Dubai branch's foreign-exchange platform.
The Singapore custody service will support clients across the wider asset lifecycle, from safeguarding traditional assets to issuing and holding tokenized versions of those assets, according to Patrick Lee, Standard Chartered's Singapore chief executive.
The expansion extends Standard Chartered's custody reach to Singapore while joining other global banks in the institutional digital asset space. The bank already operates custody services across major financial centers including the United Arab Emirates, Luxembourg, and Hong Kong.
