Nasdaq is gearing up to start offering custody services for crypto, Bloomberg has learned, citing Tal Cohen, the company’s executive vice president and head of North American markets. At start, Nasdaq will work only with bitcoin (EXANTE: Bitcoin) and ether (ETH).
Ira Auerbach, who led prime broker services at Gemini, will reportedly head up the new Nasdaq Digital Assets unit. Auerbach said:
"We believe this next wave of the revolution is going to be driven by mass institutional adoption. I can think of no better place to bring that trust and brand to the market than Nasdaq."
In addition to custodian, Nasdaq is also exploring various partnerships with crypto firms. However, the exchange currently has no plans to make any acquisition, said Auerbach.