Nasdaq to launch crypto custody services by end of Q2: Report

Global securities marketplace Nasdaq Inc. is gearing up to launch its custody services for digital assets by the end of the second quarter of this year, according to Bloomberg.

Nasdaq expects to launch crypto safekeeping services this year, joining a growing pool of traditional finance firms moving into the sector after a spate of bankruptcies https://t.co/Jz8TuFARcs

— Bloomberg (@business) March 24, 2023

As reported by Bloomberg, the exchange group has applied for a limited-purpose trust company charter from the New York Department of Financial Services, which would oversee the new business. Nasdaq's senior vice president and head of Nasdaq Digital Assets, Ira Auerbach, reportedly disclosed this in an interview in Paris, stating that the group is committed to ensuring all necessary regulatory approvals and technical infrastructure are in place. 

Initially announced in September, the project will be the exchange operator's first major venture into the crypto industry. The first step for Nasdaq's digital assets division will be to safeguard Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), with plans to eventually build a broad suite of services for the group’s digital assets division, including execution for financial institutions, Auerbach reportedly shared. 

With traditional financial institutions stepping up to fill the gap left by bankruptcies in the crypto industry, Nasdaq's entry could potentially be a game-changer for the sector. Its reputation and size in the global exchange market could help boost institutional investor confidence in the crypto market, paving the way for more traditional financial institutions to follow suit.

Related: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom

Nasdaq is set to join BNY Mellon and Fidelity as part of other large financial firms offering crypto safekeeping. 

In 2022, Cointelegraph reported that BNY Mellon, America’s oldest bank, had launched crypto services. The 238-year-old bank formed an enterprise digital assets unit in 2021 to develop crypto solutions and a platform to bridge digital and traditional asset custody.