Citi to launch Bitcoin custody for institutions by year-end

Citi has unveiled its Custody+ platform and confirmed plans to launch institutional digital asset custody later in 2026, beginning with Bitcoin.

Business Wire reported on Aug. 18 that Citi Investor Services had launched Custody+, a collection of near- and real-time custody services for institutional clients operating across continuous markets and shorter settlement cycles.

The rollout has also given Citi a firm timetable for its digital asset custody business. According to the bank, the service is expected to become operational later this year and will initially support Bitcoin (BTC).

Rather than running Bitcoin custody through a separate product, Citi plans to build the service on its common digital asset architecture. Institutional clients will be able to access traditional securities and cryptocurrency custody through the same framework, although the bank has not disclosed a launch date or named any clients.

Citi Custody+ combines Bitcoin and securities services

Custody+ replaces a standard custody model with modular services that clients can adapt to their own operating systems and workflows. Citi’s existing custody network serves customers in more than 100 markets, including 62 markets where the bank operates its own infrastructure.

Digital asset custody will sit alongside real-time settlement, liquidity management, foreign exchange services, and market data. Under the proposed structure, an asset manager holding Bitcoin and conventional securities could use one Citi environment for custody services instead of dealing with separate operating systems.

Earlier crypto.news coverage detailed Citi’s plans to connect Bitcoin with the reporting, tax, control, and portfolio systems already used for traditional assets. The February report said the bank was developing key management and wallet infrastructure as part of a 2026 institutional rollout.

Citi had spent two to three years designing the custody service by October 2025, according to Biswarup Chatterjee, the bank’s global head of partnerships and innovation. At the time, Chatterjee said the bank was considering a mix of internally built technology and third-party systems for different assets and client groups.

“We may have certain solutions that are completely designed and built in-house that are targeted towards certain assets and certain segment of our clients,” Chatterjee told CNBC, adding that Citi could use a third-party solution for other assets.

The latest announcement identifies Bitcoin as the first supported cryptocurrency but does not say which assets could follow. Citi has also not specified whether its custody technology will be entirely internal or retain the hybrid model discussed in 2025.

Real-time processing supports Citi’s Bitcoin custody plan

Custody+ has arrived after Citi completed the U.S. rollout of its patented Single Event Processing technology, known as SEP. The system processes asset-servicing transactions through one continuous flow across Citi’s domestic and international custody networks.

More than 80% of the bank’s total event volume is now handled in real time, according to Citi. Within the United States, SEP has cut processing times for voluntary corporate actions by as much as 92%, while 96% of voluntary events are completed in under two hours.

Instant settlement services connect client instructions with final settlement at central securities depositories. Citi said its integrated ledger and real-time data also give clients transaction visibility across the bank’s 62 proprietary custody markets.

Alongside settlement, the platform provides automated hedging and real-time foreign exchange execution. Cash tools include instant position updates, liquidity sweeps, funding services, and cash-balance projections linked to custody transactions.

Chris Cox, head of Investor Services at Citi, said the bank’s Services business invests more than $2 billion annually in its platform strategy, with spending focused on speed, scale and availability.

“Custody+ is a clear example of this investment as we build infrastructure to eliminate latency and drag for institutional investor clients,” Cox said.

Cox added that Citi was combining its international network with data and technology to support institutions that need continuous market access, transparency, and precise transaction processing.

Citi Token Services moves deposits around the clock

Operating alongside the planned Bitcoin service, Citi Token Services already supports the near-instant transfer of tokenized deposits at any time of day across selected Citi markets. The product applies blockchain-based settlement to commercial bank deposits rather than using a publicly issued stablecoin.

Custody+ also includes tax-document processing supported by artificial intelligence. Citi said the technology has reduced document processing times by as much as 70%, while the bank’s Market Guide platform supplies regulatory and operational information to clients in more than 100 locations.

Cloud sharing and application programming interfaces give institutions access to Citi data for their own analytics and AI systems. Under the platform’s white-label option, financial companies can also use Citi’s infrastructure for transaction instructions, workflow management, reporting, and market information delivered to their customers.

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

Agarwal said the individual services were designed to help clients simplify their operating models as custody operations became more complex.

Citi expands its institutional tokenization business

Beyond Bitcoin, Citi has been developing products that place traditional financial claims on blockchain-based systems. In June, the bank disclosed plans to offer wealthy and institutional clients tokenized depositary receipts linked to shares in private companies.

The private-share platform will initially be offered to investors outside the United States, with Citi serving as both issuer and custodian. The bank reportedly plans to consider U.S. access if regulatory conditions permit.

Under the planned structure, clients would receive regulated exposure to private businesses through Citi-issued instruments rather than purchasing company shares directly. Citi has held talks with large private companies but has not publicly identified the prospective participants.

Private businesses such as OpenAI and Anthropic have attracted investor demand while remaining outside public stock markets. However, the Citi service would be limited to clients who already meet the relevant institutional or wealth requirements.

The bank’s tokenization work also follows a June research report that placed the global tokenized securities market at about $17 billion. Citi’s tokenization market forecast projected a base-case increase to $5.5 trillion by 2030, with estimates ranging from $2.7 trillion to $8.2 trillion.

For the U.S. market, Citi estimated that 10% of Treasury bills and 3% of publicly traded stocks could become tokenized by 2030. The bank also projected that stablecoin growth could generate about $1 trillion in additional demand for U.S. Treasuries.

Citi’s research estimated that moving 10% of everyday U.S. investors to digital trading platforms could create $2.6 trillion in demand for digital stocks. Its forecast covered tokenized Treasury bills, equities, funds and other financial instruments, while the newly announced Custody+ platform will initially extend native digital asset custody only to Bitcoin.