BCG Study Puts Custody At The Center Of Banks’ Digital Asset Plans
TL;DR: A BCG examine commissioned by Ripple argues that banks’ custody selections form the digital asset companies they will provide. Its modeled earnings alternative is an illustration, whereas the report’s adoption estimate excludes belongings on centralized exchanges.
For a financial institution planning to maneuver into digital belongings, the custody determination can decide which merchandise it is ready to construct.
That is the argument in research announced by Boston Consulting Group on October 22. The examine, commissioned by Ripple, estimates that greater than 30% of digital belongings exterior centralized exchanges are held via institutional custody fashions.
The exclusion issues: the determine isn’t a declare that establishments maintain 30% of your complete crypto market via third-party custodians. BCG’s class additionally consists of enterprise self-custody and wallet-as-a-service preparations, which contain completely different levels of management and outsourcing.
The Choice Goes Beyond Who Holds The Keys
BCG identifies a number of custody fashions and argues that banks may have a mix, relying on the companies they intend to supply. The analysis emphasizes governance, integration and the flexibility to work throughout suppliers.
In Ripple’s account of the findings, giant banks are more and more licensing self-custody expertise and constructing shopper merchandise on high, whereas wallet-as-a-service is gaining traction amongst cost and retail fintechs. The firm additionally highlights demand for widespread controls throughout a number of custodians.
That helps clarify why custody is a product-design determination in addition to a safety determination. Holding belongings for lengthy durations is a distinct workflow from transferring collateral between venues or settling a stream of funds. The identical key-management expertise can help both, however approval insurance policies and operational processes will differ.
Consider a financial institution utilizing a stablecoin for funds. A safe signing system nonetheless wants to determine who’s allowed to instruct a cost, how limits apply and what occurs when directions battle. Security on the cryptographic stage can not, by itself, reply these enterprise questions.
A Business-Case Estimate With Clear Limits
BCG’s illustrative evaluation suggests a regional financial institution with $200 billion to $300 billion in belongings may generate $80 million to $100 million in profit-and-loss upside by combining custody selections with 5 digital asset use instances. That is a modeled alternative, not reported earnings or a forecast that each comparable financial institution will obtain it.
The sponsorship additionally belongs within the image. Ripple sells custody infrastructure and commissioned the work. The report can provide a helpful framework whereas nonetheless reflecting a business curiosity in increasing the market.
There is a longtime supervisory backdrop. In a July 2025 joint statement, US banking regulators reminded banks that crypto safekeeping should meet current security, soundness and authorized necessities. They mentioned the assertion created no new supervisory expectations.
For banks contemplating tokenized assets, the sensible query is due to this fact which controls, integrations and liabilities accompany the proposed income. The strongest enterprise case would present how a selected service earns cash after its working prices and dangers, relatively than counting on an industry-wide adoption quantity.
Written by the News Desk and edited by Samuel Rae.
