Citi Plans to Offer Bitcoin Custody Services for Institutional Clients This Year, Integrating into the Custody+ Platform

Odaily Planet Daily News: Bitcoin News posted on the X platform stating that Citi plans to provide Bitcoin custody services for institutional clients later this year through its Custody+ platform. This service will integrate Bitcoin with traditional assets such as stocks and bonds under the same custody framework, allowing clients to access custody, settlement, foreign exchange, cash, and liquidity services through a single system. Bitcoin will be the first digital asset supported by Citi's new custody service. Currently, Citi has not disclosed the specific launch date or the list of initial clients. Custody+ was launched by Citi Investor Services, whose custody business covers over 100 markets and operates proprietary custody networks in 62 markets. Citi stated that its goal is for the bank to independently custody native digital assets rather than relying solely on external exchanges or other digital asset companies. The project has been in development for approximately two to three years, with Citi first revealing related plans in 2025. Citi noted that Custody+ will offer real-time settlement, foreign exchange services, automated hedging, cash management, and liquidity tools. The Single Event Processing system within its custody framework currently processes over 80% of event volumes in real-time. In the U.S., this system has reduced the processing time for certain voluntary corporate actions by up to 92%, with 96% of related events completed within two hours. Chris Cox, Head of Citi Investor Services, stated that Citi invests over $2 billion annually in its Services platform.