Standard Chartered is moving to consolidate its institutional digital asset custody business by acquiring Zodia Custody, the crypto custodian it co-founded, in a transaction that remains subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. The move shifts the custodian from a jointly founded venture structure toward direct ownership within the bank, placing regulated digital asset custody alongside its existing institutional service lines.

Once completed, the deal will bring Zodia's regulated custody operations in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Luxembourg into the bank's Securities Services business, extending that unit's regulated digital asset coverage across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Australia. Financial terms were not disclosed.

As part of the transaction, Zodia's digital asset software and professional services business will be separated into an independent entity, Zodia Solutions, under SC Ventures, Standard Chartered's venture-building arm. The company will continue providing infrastructure to financial institutions seeking to launch and scale digital asset services. The structure preserves a technology business serving financial institutions while consolidating the regulated custody operations within the bank.

The agreement follows the acceptance of Standard Chartered's non-binding acquisition offer in May 2026. It comes as the bank expands its digital asset custody and trading capabilities, seeking to integrate traditional securities services with crypto infrastructure for institutional investors. With approvals still outstanding, both completion of the acquisition and the timing of the integration into Securities Services remain contingent on the regulatory review process.

Zodia Custody launched in 2020 as a joint venture between SC Ventures and Northern Trust, the United States-based custody bank, and has positioned itself as an institutional-grade custodian for digital assets.

Existing Zodia Custody clients are expected to continue receiving services without disruption, Standard Chartered said. The key markers as the transaction progresses are regulatory approval, the transfer of custody operations in the five markets into Securities Services, and the establishment of Zodia Solutions as an independent company under SC Ventures.

Source: BitcoinKE