Zodia Custody, an institution-first digital asset custodian, whose shareholders include Standard Chartered, SBI Holdings, Northern Trust, and National Australia Bank, has been selected to provide custody services to Jacobi Asset Management (Jacobi) for its spot bitcoin ETF.
The firm writes that the Jacobi FT Wilshire Bitcoin ETF is the first spot bitcoin ETF to be listed on Euronext Amsterdam, and also the first such ETP with an active decarbonisation strategy and verifiable built-in Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) solution qualifying as an SFDR Article 8 ETF, allowing institutional investors to access the benefits of bitcoin whilst also meeting ESG goals.
The ETF, regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC), trades under the ticker BCOIN, with Flow Traders operating as market makers and Jane Street and DRW as additional Authorised Participants. The asset manager has now added Zodia Custody into the ETF’s infrastructure to provide custodial services, taking over from Fidelity Digital Assets.
“Our ETF is unique in Europe. Beyond being the only ETF with a decarbonisation strategy, our fund flows directly into the underlying asset holding the bitcoin as an asset, unlike others which are debt instruments and the bitcoin is held as collateral. Such an innovative approach thus requires equally innovative partners,” says Martin Bednall, CEO of Jacobi Asset Management. “Zodia Custody meets that need precisely—their rigorous and innovative approach to custody is exactly what we and our investors need. We look forward to evolving the digital asset ecosystem together, long term, and providing greater outcomes for institutional digital asset investors.”
Against the backdrop of a continuing sharp increase in ETP demand, institutions require greater security and expert custody services throughout the issuance to redemption lifecycle, which is where the partnership between Jacobi and Zodia Custody comes into play, the firm writes.
Through this partnership, Jacobi will bring its investors an additional layer of security, protection, regulatory compliance and transparency to the bitcoin ETF, the firm says. Additionally, institutions investing in the Jacobi FT Wilshire Bitcoin ETF will benefit from cold-storage wallets, coupled with 24/7 instant access to allow investors to move at the speed of the market. For institutional investors, the crucial end result is greater risk management controls, stemming from the custodian’s bank-grade and compliant approach to custody.
“As the European market for exchange-traded products continues to expand, Zodia Custody’s exceptional track record in providing secure and compliant custody solutions is more essential than ever,” says Julian Sawyer, CEO of Zodia Custody. “We are delighted to be working with Jacobi Asset Management to provide unmatched security, risk management, and compliance for Jacobi’s FT Wilshire Bitcoin ETF. The largest ETP issuers globally trust us to set the standard for institutional custody.”
Alongside the provision of custody services for the bitcoin ETF, the two firms write that they will seek to further collaborate in the long term as Jacobi looks to innovate further digital asset investment vehicles.
