Wall Street Giant Citi to Launch Bitcoin Custody Later This Year

Citigroup confirmed that Bitcoin will be the first cryptocurrency supported by its upcoming custodian service.

The Wall Street banking behemoth announced earlier today that it’s preparing to take another step into the cryptocurrency industry, highlighting plans to launch digital asset custody later in 2026.

Bitcoin will be the first asset supported by the new service, which will sit alongside the bank’s traditional custody business under its newly unveiled Custody+ platform.

The press release published on August 18 indicated that Custody+ will act as a suite of near- and real-time services designed to accommodate financial markets increasingly moving toward continuous trading and faster settlement. Given one of the key differences between traditional financial assets and crypto – namely, the fact that the latter operates 24/7 – Citi explained that the crypto-focused part of the business will launch later this year.

“Digital assets already operate on near-instant settlement, 24/7. Citi expects to go live with digital asset custody later this year, starting with the custody of Bitcoin. This is being built on Citi’s common digital asset architecture, and we will offer a one-stop custody experience. Clients will access traditional and crypto custody capabilities within the same framework for an integrated experience.”