British banking giant Standard Chartered-owned crypto custody firm Zodia is launching services in Hong Kong. “The Hong Kong government and the regulators see digital assets as the future and also want Hong Kong to be a hub,” the crypto firm’s CEO emphasized. Zodia has already expanded into three other Asian markets.
Standard Chartered’s Zodia Expanding Into Hong Kong
Zodia Custoday, a crypto custody firm owned by Standard Chartered, Northern Trust, and Japan’s SBI, is launching services in Hong Kong, CNBC reported Sunday. The company is based in London and registered in the U.K. with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), in Ireland with the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI), and in Luxembourg with the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF).
Julian Sawyer, the CEO of Zodia, explained that Hong Kong is a market where institutional demand for crypto is stronger than retail demand, making it the ideal market for her company. The executive added:
The Hong Kong government and the regulators see digital assets as the future and also want Hong Kong to be a hub.
Zodia is commencing its service rollout in Hong Kong in phases. In the initial phase, its goal is to offer services for a limited set of crypto assets to clients in Hong Kong. Additionally, the company is actively in talks with both the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to ensure regulatory compliance.
The crypto custody firm has been actively expanding in Asia and has recently expanded its services to Japan, Singapore, and Australia. Sawyer shared:
What we’re seeing is there are absolutely clients in all of those four markets who want to do things … We also see a lot of other clients and prospects outside those four jurisdictions that want to come in on the institutional side.
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