Citi to Launch Bitcoin Custody in 2026, Plugging BTC Into Its 100+ Market Network

Citigroup announced on August 18 that it will launch bitcoin custody for institutional clients later this year, making BTC the first digital asset to enter its new Custody+ platform. The service will let large investors hold bitcoin through the same infrastructure Citi already uses for stocks, bonds and other traditional assets across more than 100 markets, including 62 where the bank runs its own proprietary custody network.

The announcement gives a firmer timeline to plans Citi first signaled in 2025, when it said digital asset custody was coming in 2026 without specifying a date. Bitcoin will go first; Citi has not disclosed which other tokens might follow.

What Custody+ actually changes

Custody+ is a suite combining custody, settlement, foreign exchange and cash management under one framework, alongside real-time asset servicing, instant settlement, liquidity tools and AI-powered market intelligence. Citi says clients will access traditional and crypto custody “within the same framework for an integrated experience,” rather than routing bitcoin holdings through a separate crypto-native custodian.

The bank is pairing the bitcoin launch with a broader push toward faster processing across its custody operations. Citi says its new system now handles more than 80% of custody-related events in real time in the U.S., cutting processing times by as much as 92% and completing 96% of events within two hours — a benchmark that matters as the bank extends the same rails to an asset that trades 24/7.

“Custody+ is the product of a multi-year commitment to building infrastructure that matches the speed of our clients’ strategies,” said Amit Agarwal, head of custody at Citi Investor Services.

Citi framed the timing around the mismatch between legacy settlement cycles and crypto’s around-the-clock markets: “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.”

Why it matters for institutional bitcoin holders

For institutions already using Citi to safeguard equities and fixed income, the move removes a structural barrier to holding bitcoin: no need to onboard a separate crypto custodian, run parallel compliance checks, or reconcile positions across two providers. Consolidating BTC into the same custody stack as traditional assets could lower the operational friction that has kept some regulated funds on the sidelines of direct bitcoin exposure.

Citi is not the first major bank chasing this business, but its scale — a custody network spanning over 100 markets — gives the launch outsized reach if institutional demand for bank-grade bitcoin custody continues to build. The bank has been building toward this for years, having expanded its crypto team by up to 100 hires back in 2021.

No exact launch date has been set, and Citi has not named which assets might join bitcoin on Custody+ once it goes live. The rollout will be watched closely as a signal of how quickly traditional custodians are willing to fold spot crypto into infrastructure built for stocks and bonds.

Read more: Jane Street Discloses $990M Bitcoin ETF Stake, $828M Parked in BlackRock’s IBIT

Sources

• coindesk.com
• coingape.com
• cryptopotato.com
• theblock.co