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Zodia Custody, the cryptocurrency storage platform partly owned by Standard Chartered, aims to raise $50m for worldwide expansion and new product development. The company, which has grown as a significant figure in cryptocurrency storage globally, is actively engaging with a wider spectrum of investors. It currently supports 38 types of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ether, and stablecoins such as USDt from Tether and USD Coin. The funding will also help Zodia extend its influence in key financial areas including Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney, Luxembourg, Dublin, and London.

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Zodia Custody, a cryptocurrency storage platform part-owned by Standard Chartered, is looking to broaden its operations worldwide with the support of new funds. Julian Sawyer, Zodia Custody’s CEO, announced that the company is looking to gather $50 million to expand and roll out new products. Bloomberg reported this development on November 4.

Zodia, which is supported by several financial companies, hopes to draw in a wider variety of investors, including organizations mainly dealing with tokenization and payments. The company started its fundraising initiative this past October, working together with cryptocurrecy advisory service Architect Partners.

Since its beginnings in 2021, Zodia has continued to become a significant name in the field of cryptocurrency storage on the global scene, increasing its impact in prime financial spots such as Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney, Luxembourg, Dublin, and London amongst others.

Zodia’s website states that its main base is located in London and it has many regulatory registrations globally, one of which includes the Hong Kong Companies Registry. In 2023, Zodia managed to raise $36 million in a series A funding round headed by Japanese finance conglomerate SBI Holdings. After the cash influx, Standard Chartered reportedly still maintained a 90% ownership in Zodia, which includes support from the likes of National Australia Bank and Northern Trust.

As of October 2023, Zodia catered to 38 kinds of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether along with stablecoins such as USDt from Tether and USD Coin.

The trend of global financial institutions making their way into the domain of cryptocurrency storage services has been rising in recent times. For instance, banking heavyweight Bank of New York Mellon became a full-fledged provider of digital storage services in 2022. In October, Japan’s largest investment bank’s digital asset storage provider, Komainu, revealed expansion plans in Asia with the acquisition of Singapore-based cryptocurrency storage business Propine Technologies.

Around the same time, Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission was getting ready to launch a trial of institutional cryptocurrency storage services. In August, State Street announced that they will be partnering with digital asset infrastructure company Taurus to roll out institutional storage and tokenization services.