StanChart Adds Singapore to Its Custody Map — Retail Still Needs to Keep Applying 🏦

Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) announced on October 8 that it plans to offer digital asset custody services for institutional clients and accredited-investor corporates in Singapore, covering selected cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets, subject to regulatory requirements. The bank did not disclose a go-live date or confirm Monetary Authority of Singapore clearance.

The offering sits within Standard Chartered's Financing and Securities Services division and extends the bank's custody footprint beyond the UAE, Luxembourg and Hong Kong. Standard Chartered Singapore and ASEAN CEO Patrick Lee said robust infrastructure is critical for moving the next generation of capital markets products on-chain, adding that Singapore's role as a "leading financial and innovation hub" is an important part of the bank's "global strategy." Cointelegraph requested the list of supported cryptocurrencies but did not receive an immediate response.

In May, Standard Chartered announced plans to consolidate its custody operations by acquiring Zodia Custody's custody business and spinning out Zodia Solutions, an offer shareholders had accepted. The MiCA-regulated Zodia stack underpins Standard Chartered's European custody activities.

In the UAE, Standard Chartered's services extend to institutional crypto trading and fiat payment infrastructure. The bank launched spot Bitcoin ($BTC) and Ether ($ETH) trading in the UAE last month, following a banking agreement with CoinMENA signed in June that supports the exchange's fiat on- and off-ramps, client money accounts and virtual account-based transaction management. The Singapore custody service will target institutions and corporate clients qualifying as accredited investors, with retail clients outside the scope of the planned launch.