The digital asset infrastructure provider will use its technology to connect qualified custodians on the Fireblocks Network with clients.

NEW YORK — MAY 10, 2024 — Fireblocks, the institutional-grade digital infrastructure provider, has announced today the launch of the Fireblocks Global Custodian Partner Program, a first-of-its-kind global network of licensed digital asset custodians to support its customers at meeting rapidly rising regulatory standards. 

Built on the Fireblocks Network, the Global Custodian Partner Program will launch this quarter with an initial group of licensed custodians based in the United States, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Thailand, and Australia. Once live, Fireblocks customers will be able to connect to licensed providers securely while seamlessly managing their digital asset operations on the Fireblocks platform.  

The move comes amid growing institutional demand for qualified custodians in the digital assets space as asset managers, registered investment advisors and other major financial market participants accumulate exposure through tokenization, ETFs, allocation or advisory. It’s also in response to rising regulatory requirements, including the proposal from the US  Securities and Exchanges Commission for more stringent asset safeguarding requirements for registered investment advisors in February last year.

To facilitate client access to asset safeguarding services, Fireblocks is also announcing its intention to launch a limited-purpose trust company that is under the regulation of the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Pending final regulatory approval, the Fireblocks Trust Company will offer cold storage custody solutions to US clients. 

“The global custodian landscape is evolving quickly, and the launch of the Global Custodian Partner Program is a big step toward meeting the growing demand for a diverse network of solutions,” said Adam Levine, SVP of Corporate Development & Partnerships at Fireblocks. “We are proud to continue accelerating our technology and ecosystem to serve the growing needs of digital asset businesses, and this represents a major step forward.”

Since the launch of bitcoin spot ETFs, the need for segregated functions and professional grade safeguards for assets has become a key priority. As a result, Fireblocks is leveraging its technology to enable clients and RIAs to comply with new rules by making custody arrangements easily accessible. 

Clients will be able to use the Fireblocks infrastructure as a single point of access to licensed  custodians as well as liquidity pools, exchanges, on/off ramps, and staking, among other services built on the Fireblocks Network. More custodians are expected to join the Program over the coming months. 

The addition reinforces Fireblocks’ commitment to providing self-managed technology solutions to clients with the goal of significantly reducing counterparty risk.

Fireblocks is an easy-to-use platform to create new blockchain based products, and manage day-to-day digital asset operations. Exchanges, banks, PSPs, lending desks, custodians, trading desks, and hedge funds can securely scale their digital asset operations through the Fireblocks Network and MPC-based Wallet Infrastructure. Fireblocks serves thousands of organizations in the financial, payments, and web3 space, has secured the transfer of over $6 trillion in digital assets and has a unique insurance policy that covers assets in storage & transit.

Find out why CISOs and Ops Teams love Fireblocks at www.Fireblocks.com.