Institutional Investors Are Shunning Self-Custody Solutions - PwC Report
"Institutional investors in Asia are increasingly turning to third-party custody service providers to navigate the complexities of the $1.2 trillion digital asset market, pointing to the limitations of self-custodial solutions."
- "There is a growing demand for institutional-grade custody solutions among family offices, high-net-worth individuals and external asset managers in safeguarding their digital asset holdings and exploring new investment opportunities, according to a joint report released by the digital asset wealth platform Aspen Digital and “big four” global accounting firm PwC."
“More institutional investors are recognizing the limitations of self-custodial solutions for their ongoing trading and operational needs. Instead, many institutions prefer third-party custody service providers,” Aspen Digital said in a statement.
- "Over 120 custody providers, including Citigroup and Deutsche Bank, are now operating in the space as of April 2023, according to Blockdata."
- "The global digital asset custody market was
valued at $447.9 billion in 2022," highlighted the report.
"Safekeeping of assets and ensuring they are segregated from client service providers' own (house) assets is a fundamental need. This has applied for many years in the traditional securities industry," PwC digital assets and web3 co-lead Duncan Fitzgerald said in the statement.
- "Last month, another PwC survey found more hedge funds investing in crypto, despite recent volatility," reported The Block.
- "The report comes at a time of increased optimism surrounding the prospect of a spot bitcoin ETF in the United States, following the renewed race kicked off by BlackRock on June 15, with Coinbase listed as the custodian."
