Citi: Plans to provide Bitcoin custody services for institutional clients within the year, incorporating into the Custody+ platform

Citi plans to offer Bitcoin custody services for institutional clients through its Custody+ platform later this year. This service will integrate Bitcoin with traditional assets such as stocks and bonds within the same custody framework, allowing clients to access custody, settlement, foreign exchange, cash, and liquidity services through a single system. Bitcoin will be the first digital asset supported by Citi's new custody service, and Citi has not yet announced a specific launch date or the list of initial clients.

Custody+ is launched by Citi Investor Services, and Citi's custody business covers over 100 markets, operating its own custody network in 62 markets. Citi states that its goal is for banks to self-custody native digital assets rather than relying solely on external exchanges or other digital asset companies. The project has been in development for about two to three years, with Citi first disclosing related plans in 2025. Custody+ will provide real-time settlement, foreign exchange services, automated hedging, cash management, and liquidity tools. The Single Event Processing in its custody system currently processes over 80% of event volume in real-time; in the U.S., this system has reduced the processing time for some voluntary corporate actions by up to 92%, with 96% of related events completed within two hours. Chris Cox, head of Citi Investor Services, stated that Citi invests over $2 billion annually in its Services platform.