Zodia Custody, SBI Digital Establish Japanese Custody Business

Standard Chartered-backed Zodia Custody has inked a deal with SBI Digital Asset Holdings to launch a joint venture in Japan providing digital asset custodial services.

The deal is subject to anti-trust and foreign direct investment clearances, and licences from the Japanese regulator, the Financial Services Agency, and will act as a Japan-based crypto assets custodian, targeting institutional clients.

The joint venture, owned 51% by SBI DAH and 49% by Zodia Custody, will address what the firms say is a bottleneck that has previously held back interested institutions from participating in this space. It will allow both groups to expand their existing markets presence and increase their ability to provide custody services and other ancillary services for crypto assets to institutional clients.

“[Our] relationship with Zodia Custody centres on building trust with our clients through financial strength, technological and operational expertise, and a shared alignment with market regulations for digital assets,” says Fernando Luis Vazquez Cao, CEO of SBI Digital. “We believe our partnership with Zodia is a unique global proposition to institutional clients, supporting our vision to become a pioneer and global trusted partner in the financial industry. We are excited with the path ahead of us.”

Julian Sawyer, CEO of Zodia Custody, adds, “At Zodia Custody, we intend to partner with the best in the world to expand our institutional custody offering. Partnering with SBI DAH ensures the joint venture will offer gold- standard crypto asset custody services in Japan. Zodia Custody is both proud and excited to be working with SBI DAH to help set up SBI Zodia Custody; the first tier 1 crypto asset custodian for institutions in Japan.”