custody

According to on-chain analyst Ai Yi's monitoring, well-known ETH bull James Fickel (@jamesfickel) transferred 10,000 ETH ($18.62 million) from a Coinbase custody address to a deposit address, possibly for trading.This marks his return to executing large asset deposit operations at the million-dollar level after six months. He currently holds 38,936.13 ETH on-chain, with a total value of $72.43 million.

According to Cointelegraph, the Texas Comptroller's Office has released a request for proposals, planning to transfer its $10 million strategic Bitcoin reserve from the BlackRock-owned IBIT spot ETF to directly held Bitcoin. The winning bidder must complete the transition of the IBIT holdings to directly held Bitcoin within 60 days after the contract is executed and will be responsible for purchasing, holding, managing, and reporting the state's Bitcoin and other eligible cryptocurrency assets, while also establishing a public website to disclose the reserve holdings.In addition, the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Advisory Committee has been officially formed to provide recommendations on custody arrangements, risk management, and investment strategies.

According to Edaily, South Korean digital asset custody company KDAC has been selected as the custodian and operational service provider for the seizure of virtual assets by the National Tax Service of South Korea. This is the first instance of the government entrusting the seizure of virtual assets to a private professional custody company. KDAC has signed a delegation contract with the National Tax Service and will launch the project in June.This project is a follow-up measure to the "Improvement Plan for the Holding and Management System of Virtual Assets in the Public Sector" jointly released by the government in April this year. It aims to establish a formal operational model through the introduction of a private custody and operational system after pilot operations. This model will serve as a reference case for public institutions such as the prosecution, police, and customs in managing virtual assets.

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) and the Stellar Development Foundation announced a partnership to implement DTC custody asset tokenization services on the Stellar network, with related assets scheduled to officially launch in the first half of 2027.DTCC had already received a no-action letter from the U.S. SEC in December 2025, allowing it to engage in real-world asset tokenization business. The two parties will focus on advancing the on-chain conversion of highly liquid assets such as Russell 1000 constituents, mainstream index ETFs, U.S. Treasury bonds, and various types of bonds.This collaboration relies on the Stellar network to build a compliant on-chain channel, marking an important advancement for traditional financial infrastructure to embrace blockchain, and will further broaden the application scenarios for real-world asset tokenization.

Babylon Labs has initiated a temperature check proposal in the Aave community, proposing to integrate native Bitcoin as collateral on Aave V4 through the Babylon Trustless Bitcoin Vaults protocol.This solution does not require wrapping, cross-chain bridges, or custodians. Users will lock Bitcoin in Taproot UTXOs, and redemptions will be controlled by on-chain rules (such as loan repayments), settling directly to Bitcoin UTXOs. The proposal deploys two Aave V4 Spokes: Babylon Core Lending Spoke (lending) and BTC Vault Swap Spoke (post-liquidation settlement).Collateral exists in the form of vaultBTC, a transfer-restricted ERC-20 token that can only be transferred between fixed whitelisted addresses. In the liquidation process, liquidators can immediately settle with WBTC, and subsequent Bitcoin redemptions will be completed by arbitrageurs.

According to CoinDesk, cryptocurrency custody company Copper is seeking to sell the company at a valuation of approximately $500 million and has engaged Wall Street investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald to assist in advancing the transaction.Copper's core asset is the ClearLoop custody settlement system, which supports institutional clients in completing delivery versus payment (DvP) without putting assets on-chain, effectively eliminating settlement risk. The company currently has over 1,000 active counterparties, with a nominal trading volume exceeding $50 billion per month.Copper had previously considered an IPO, but due to the sluggish Bitcoin prices and the capital-absorbing effect of the AI sector, the overall crypto IPO market has entered a wait-and-see mode.

Cointelegraph posted on the X platform that the governor of South Carolina has signed Bill S.163. The bill protects the self-custody rights of Bitcoin, prohibits discriminatory taxes on Bitcoin, and safeguards the rights of proof-of-work mining in the state.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has officially signed HF 3709, a bill that allows banks and credit unions in the state to offer cryptocurrency custody services. The bill will take effect on August 1, 2026. According to the bill's requirements, financial institutions must develop written policies covering risk management, internal controls, and security measures, and submit written notice to the state commissioner of commerce at least 60 days before providing custody services. The bill specifically emphasizes that customer assets must be strictly segregated from the institution's own assets.One of the main authors of the bill, Representative Bernie Perryman, stated that this move aims to allow local financial institutions to "grow alongside their customers," preventing residents from being forced to rely on unregulated out-of-state or offshore providers. The Minnesota Credit Union Network stated that this legislation provides residents with a "safer way to manage crypto assets" and strengthens protections against risks such as fraud and hacking through regulation. With this, Minnesota becomes another state, following New York, Wyoming, and Virginia, that allows banks to offer crypto custody services.Meanwhile, earlier this month, the state also enacted another bill (SF 3868) that bans cryptocurrency ATMs. Starting August 1, the state cannot install new cryptocurrency ATMs, and existing machines must be removed by December 31. As a result, Bitcoin ATM operator Bitcoin Depot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and initiated business liquidation this Monday.

According to the latest bill signed by the government of Minnesota, local banks and credit unions can now legally provide custody services for cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.The bill aims to provide a clear regulatory framework for financial institutions in the state to participate in digital asset businesses and to expand the coverage of traditional finance to cryptocurrency services.

According to Bloomberg, Standard Chartered Bank will acquire the cryptocurrency custody business of its holding subsidiary Zodia Custody, and its non-binding acquisition offer has been accepted by other shareholders and noteholders of Zodia Custody. Margaret Harwood-Jones, Global Head of Financing and Securities Services at Standard Chartered Bank, stated that this merger will pave the way for Standard Chartered to launch cryptocurrency custody services in new markets such as the UK and Australia.After the acquisition is completed, Zodia Custody's infrastructure business will continue to operate as an independent software-as-a-service company, renamed Zodia Solutions, led by current CEO Julian Sawyer, with Standard Chartered's venture capital division holding a majority stake in Zodia Solutions. Existing shareholders of Zodia Custody include Northern Trust, Emirates NBD, National Australia Bank, and SBI Holdings, and discussions are ongoing regarding whether these parties will continue to hold shares in Zodia Solutions.

According to Axios, the Bitcoin custody platform Onramp has completed a $12.5 million Series A funding round, bringing the company's valuation to $135 million. Early Riders led the round, with participation from its private clients and external angel investors.Onramp focuses on helping large Bitcoin holders diversify their assets across multiple institutions, allowing users to avoid reliance on a single custodian and not having to manage private keys themselves.

According to official news, Consensys submitted a comment letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stating that the SEC's latest interpretive framework for crypto assets may leave regulatory gaps, creating compliance uncertainty for self-custody wallet providers like MetaMask.Consensys requests that the SEC clarify through a targeted safe harbor or other exemption measures that self-custody, user-led interfaces that only support the trading of non-security crypto assets potentially attached to investment contracts do not need to register as broker-dealers.Consensys stated that this move aims to ensure that U.S. users can continue to use open, neutral peer-to-peer blockchain tools.

According to Crowdfund Insider, Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) announced that it will launch compliant institutional-grade digital asset custody services in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), promoting Abu Dhabi as a global digital financial center, aiming to provide institutional clients with highly secure and scalable digital asset custody solutions.It is reported that the initial services will support custody for Bitcoin and Ethereum, with subsequent phases expanding to stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets (RWA), and more regulated digital financial products. The project still requires final agreement confirmation and relevant regulatory approvals.

Payward (the parent company of Kraken) has applied to the OCC for a national trust company license, planning to establish Payward National Trust Company (PNTC). This entity will provide regulated, bank-like digital asset custody and trust services to institutional and individual clients.Previously, Coinbase and Ripple have received conditional approvals for similar licenses, indicating that crypto institutions are accelerating their alignment with the compliant financial system.

The on-chain analysis platform Bubblemaps posted on platform X, indicating that the token MYSTERY may have experienced highly concentrated control behavior during its initial launch, describing it as a "textbook scam."Bubblemaps disclosed data showing that about 90 created wallets seized approximately 90% of the supply when MYSTERY launched and continued to sell off in subsequent stages, having cashed out over $100,000 while still holding about 40% of the token supply. Additionally, there were obvious characteristics of "bundled distribution" and centralized control during the launch phase of the token, and some KOLs promoting the token were also accused of engaging in paid promotion activities.

According to Crowdfund Insider, Swiss financial market infrastructure provider SIX has obtained approval from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) to directly integrate its digital central securities depository (CSD, formerly operated by SIX Digital Exchange AG) into the existing SIX SIS AG division. At the same time, FINMA has authorized SIX to provide cryptocurrency custody services through the merged central securities depository.Previously, SIX maintained separate infrastructures for traditional markets and blockchain-based assets for many years. This integration eliminates that boundary, creating a single platform to support end-to-end post-trade operations across asset classes. Financial institutions can manage cryptocurrency custody using the same security framework as traditional instruments like stocks and bonds under the FINMA regulatory framework.Rafael Moral Santiago, Head of Securities Services and Executive Committee Member at SIX, stated that the goal is to provide financial institutions with a single secure entry point into digital assets, combining innovation with the stability of existing systems. This initiative is part of SIX's long-term plan to build a comprehensive post-trade solution across Europe by 2030.SIX is headquartered in Switzerland and is owned by approximately 120 financial institutions, with operations covering exchanges, post-trade services, financial information, and payment infrastructure.

According to official news, the asset tokenization platform Securitize has announced that it has received approval from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) to expand its brokerage proprietary business through its subsidiary Securitize Market. This allows it to conduct tokenized securities custody business within the framework of traditional brokerages, enabling on-chain atomic swaps and clearing settlements between tokenized securities and stablecoins, as well as participating in the primary and secondary issuance underwriting and sales of tokenized securities.

According to CoinDesk, Kraken's parent company Payward submitted a second amended complaint to the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, suing former custody partner Etana Custody and its CEO Dion Brandon Russell, accusing them of misappropriating over $25 million in customer funds and operating a "Ponzi scheme."Payward claims that Etana mixed custodial assets with its own funds to pay for operational expenses and high-risk investments, and covered up the funding gap with false account reports.In April 2025, when Kraken attempted to withdraw about $25 million in reserve funds, Etana delayed the process citing false reconciliation issues and relied on new deposits to fill the gap. Among these, at least $16 million was invested in a promissory note from Seabury Trade Capital, which later defaulted.Colorado regulators subsequently issued a cease and desist order against Etana, which entered liquidation proceedings in November 2025 and is currently managed by a court-appointed receiver. Kraken is seeking at least $25 million in damages and triple civil theft damages.