Standard Chartered has signed definitive agreements to acquire full ownership of digital asset custodian Zodia Custody, a move that would bring the company’s regulated crypto custody activities inside the bank’s existing securities services business.
The transaction has not yet closed. It still requires regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, and Standard Chartered has not disclosed the financial terms or a revised timetable for completion.
Regulated custody business to move into the bank
Under the agreed structure, Standard Chartered will assume control of Zodia’s regulated custody operations. After completion, those activities are expected to sit within the bank’s Securities Services division.
The bank said the planned integration is intended to consolidate its custody capabilities and support a more unified digital asset offering for institutional clients.
Zodia’s software arm will be separated
The deal does not place all of Zodia’s existing operations inside the bank. Its software and professional services businesses are set to be transferred into a separate company, Zodia Solutions, which will operate independently under SC Ventures.
According to the announced plan, Zodia Solutions will provide technology and professional services to institutions seeking to set up custody and other digital asset operations without having to build those components internally.
Talks stretched over several months
The definitive agreements follow a negotiation process that began months earlier. In May, Zodia shareholders and noteholders accepted a nonbinding offer, but the process took longer than initially expected before reaching a final signed agreement.
That timeline underscores that the latest announcement marks a formal step forward, but not the end of the process. Key details, including the value of the deal and an updated closing date, remain undisclosed.
What happens next
The next confirmed stage is regulatory review and satisfaction of standard closing requirements. Only after those steps are completed would Standard Chartered formally absorb Zodia Custody’s regulated business into Securities Services.
If the transaction closes as structured, Standard Chartered would retain the custody arm within the bank while the carved-out Zodia Solutions business continues separately under SC Ventures, serving institutions with software and professional services.
Source: crypto.news