Nexo selects Bakkt for custody of Bitcoin and Ethereum

The Bakkt Warehouse comprises both online (“warm”) and offline, air-gapped (“cold”) digital asset storage and the custodian rebalances between warm and cold storage tiers to minimize risks associated with warm storage.

Regulated digital assets institution Nexo has selected Bakkt for its crypto asset custody services in the Bakkt Warehouse, the company’s regulated custodian.

Bakkt Trust Company is regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services (charter granted August 2019). Bakkt Marketplace is registered as a Money Service Business with FinCEN and has a BitLicense through the New York Department of Financial Services.

Dan O’Prey, Chief Product Officer, Crypto at Bakkt, said: “The cryptocurrency market continues to expand at a robust pace, leading reputable crypto companies to diversify custody of assets. We are pleased that Nexo has chosen the Bakkt Warehouse as a trusted solution. As we build upon our partnerships with businesses and expand our network of operations and revenue, secure custody continues to be a pillar of Bakkt’s strategy, leveraging state-of-the-art physical and cyber security, institutional grade technology and governance, and backed by insurance.”

George Manolov, Business Development Executive at Nexo, commented: “As a global digital assets institution, Nexo acknowledges the need for a trusted partner to bring an extra level of security and credibility to our clients’ cryptocurrencies. We recognized that Bakkt’s infrastructure and regulation-first approach to crypto was a natural fit and we’re confident that this partnership will benefit all our clients and expand Nexo’s ability to service the unprecedented institutional demand for cryptocurrencies as well as individuals’ growing transaction volumes.”

The Bakkt Warehouse comprises both online (“warm”) and offline, air-gapped (“cold”) digital asset storage and the custodian rebalances between warm and cold storage tiers to minimize risks associated with warm storage.

The warm and cold wallets are built on secure wallet architecture, along with multi-zone physical security, including bank-grade vaults for additional layers of protection of assets owned by Bakkt’s clients, in this case, Nexo and its user base.

Bakkt, which saw its President resign a few weeks ago nearly three years after taking the job and has recently gone public, is opening the doors of crypto to the masses by partnering with consumer banks.

In late December 2021, Manasquan Bank, an NJ-based mutual community bank with total consolidated assets of $2.7 billion, partnered with Bakkt Holdings to bring its clients into the digital asset space.

The bank will be participating in Bakkt’s early adopter program in order to allow retail clients to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrency through the bank’s mobile banking app.

This is a major move for the banking industry in the United States as most banks that have integrated digital assets into their offering usually only cater to institutional investors.

By partnering with Bakkt, Manasquan Bank is making Bitcoin et al. approachable for the everyday person in the United States, an opportunity to break into new audience segments.

The early adopter program will launch in Q2 2022, but Manasquan Bank’s participation is contingent upon the adoption by the core financial service provider.

Bakkt has built a digital asset platform that allows banks to plug and play a crypto buy/sell/hold module which provides end clients with a seamless setup and quick access to multiple cryptocurrencies. Bakkt leverages a regulatory-first approach to safely and securely custody these assets.

Financefeeds.com