BNY, the world’s largest custodian bank, is launching Bitcoin and Ether custody services in Abu Dhabi’s Global Market (ADGM), extending institutional-grade digital asset infrastructure into the Middle East.
What BNY Is Launching in Abu Dhabi’s ADGM
The custody offering covers Bitcoin and Ether, the two largest digital assets by market capitalization. BNY’s move brings traditional finance custody standards to crypto holders operating within ADGM’s regulated environment.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- What: BNY is offering custody for Bitcoin and Ether in Abu Dhabi.
- Where: The service operates under ADGM, Abu Dhabi’s international financial center.
- Why it matters: The largest global custodian bank is now servicing crypto assets in a major Middle Eastern financial hub.
BNY is included in ADGM’s public register of regulated firms, confirming the bank’s operational presence within the jurisdiction’s financial services framework.
The launch focuses specifically on custody, the safekeeping of private keys and digital assets on behalf of clients, rather than trading or lending. This positions the service as core infrastructure for institutional participants who require segregated, regulated storage.
Why the ADGM Setting Matters
ADGM has built a dedicated regulatory framework for crypto assets, establishing rules that give institutional firms a clear compliance pathway. The jurisdiction launched its crypto asset regulatory framework to attract financial services firms looking for structured oversight in the region.
Abu Dhabi’s positioning as a digital asset hub has drawn multiple crypto firms to set up operations there. The UAE more broadly has been licensing crypto businesses at a steady pace, with firms like Crypto.com recently securing a UAE payments license for its Dubai operations.
For BNY, choosing ADGM signals that the bank sees sufficient institutional demand in the Gulf region to justify a regulated custody presence. The jurisdiction’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority oversees firms operating within ADGM, providing a layer of regulatory credibility that institutional allocators typically require before parking assets with a custodian.
What This Signals for Institutional Crypto Adoption
BNY managing custody for Bitcoin and Ether in Abu Dhabi represents the kind of infrastructure buildout that precedes larger institutional participation. Custody is a prerequisite for most regulated funds, family offices, and sovereign entities to hold digital assets directly.
The choice to support Bitcoin and Ether, rather than a broader token list, reflects the conservative approach traditional custodians have taken. Both assets have the deepest liquidity and the most established regulatory treatment globally. Recent institutional moves like Strategy’s continued Bitcoin accumulation underscore the ongoing demand from large holders for reliable custody solutions.
The Middle East has emerged as a competitive region for digital asset services, with Abu Dhabi and Dubai both courting crypto firms through dedicated regulatory zones. BNY’s entry adds a legacy banking name to a market that has largely been served by crypto-native custodians.
As Ledger Insights reported, BNY’s Abu Dhabi custody launch extends the bank’s digital asset ambitions beyond its U.S. operations, where it began offering crypto custody in 2022. The expansion into ADGM marks the bank’s first regulated crypto custody service outside the United States.
Stablecoin infrastructure is also growing in parallel across the region, with projects like Circle’s recent $222 million presale highlighting broader institutional appetite for regulated digital asset products. BNY’s custody launch fits within this wider trend of traditional financial institutions building the rails that connect crypto markets to conventional portfolio management.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency and digital asset markets carry significant risk. Always do your own research before making decisions.
