Fidelity Digital Assets Launches Custody Offering in Singapore

Fidelity Digital Asset Services is moving to corner new frontiers, as the company is now moving to establish its presence in Asia. Earlier this week, the company announced a milestone partnership that will see it move into the Asian continent, where it hopes to improve its customer base significantly.

An Alliance to Foster Expansion 

Fidelity Digital Asset Services is the crypto-focused arm of Fidelity Investments, one of the world’s largest asset management firms. As Bloomberg reported yesterday, the company is now entering the Asian market through a partnership with Stack Funds – a Singapore-based FinTech startup. 

Per the report, the partnership will see Stack Funds provide easy access to Fidelity’s custody services. Fidelity explained that the move was part of its mission to meet the increasing demand for crypto assets from high-profile investors in the region. 

Christopher Tyrer, Fidelity Digital Assets Europe’s head, explained that the partnership with Stack Funds would allow them to assess the continent’s level of crypto demand better.

“There is a critical need for platforms which have a deep understanding of what local and regional investors are looking for has historically been lacking in the digital asset space,” he added. 

So far, the partnership appears to be focusing on compliance, with Stack Funds confirming that all assets in custody will be subject to audits and investor protection measures. The company appears to be following through with its conviction that retail investors are getting more acquainted with cryptocurrencies. Earlier this month, Fidelity forecasted in a report that retail investors will turn their attention to digital currencies as familiar with Bitcoin and other crypto-assets will grow through social media. 

As the report explained, communications and social media platforms, particularly Twitter, Telegram, Reddit, and YouTube, are driving retail Bitcoin adoption. By disseminating financial information and counsel quickly and virally, they are more effective at educating people about digital assets’ benefits than traditional media.

“As this new wave of retail investors familiarizes themselves with these channels, some of their attention will undoubtedly flow to Bitcoin and other digital assets,” the report highlighted. 

The Industry Turns to Asia

Whether or not this is true, the crypto industry now appears to be focusing more on the Asian market. Last week, the American crypto exchange Kraken announced that it launched funding and crypto trading in Japan as part of its expansion into the Asia-Pacific region. As a blog post explained, Kraken has launched spot trading in Bitcoin, XRP, Ether, Litecoin, and Bitcoin Cash for Japanese residents. These traders now have access to both crypto-to-crypto and JPY-denominated pairings.

The Gemini exchange also made significant moves into the region. Per an announcement from earlier this month, the company confirmed that it had hired Andy Meehan, a former executive at investment banking giant Morgan Stanley, to head its compliance activities in the Asia-Pacific region. 

Meehan was the former head of legal for Morgan Stanley’s financial crimes division in the region. Now, he would help shape Gemini’s strategy, operations, and product. He will work out of the company’s Singapore office and answer the company’s new Asia-Pacific Managing Director, Jeremy Ng.