Solutions provider MJ Hudson has introduced a custody benchmarking service, specifically for clients investing in digital assets.
Using the benchmarking service, MJ Hudson will support clients with their selection process when looking to appoint a specialised digital asset custodian.
The new service will benchmark the capabilities of major custodians for digital asset custody provision. This will include strategy and commitment, digital asset coverage, fraud prevention, private key management, reporting, governance, legal, regulatory approvals, and custody fees.
This responds to rising demand from institutional investors that expect to increase their exposure to the new digital asset classes, says MJ Hudson.
Consequently, all major custodians are spending significant resources on developing their digital asset custody platforms to meet this demand, it adds.
MJ Hudson’s custodian bank benchmarking team (formerly Amaces) has been supporting clients in the search and selection of custody providers for traditional assets for the past 20 years.
Tom Robertson, managing director at MJ Hudson, comments: “With the digital asset market rapidly maturing, and with the regulatory environment in Europe and the US becoming clearer, asset managers and asset owners are moving at pace to ensure they are not left behind the curve.
“As this is a fast-evolving environment, the challenge for institutional investor firms is to understand the nuances in custody between traditional and digital assets, and to adopt a robust solution that best meets their own, and their investors’ requirements, in safeguarding the assets against loss or theft.”
He adds: “By extending MJ Hudson’s existing benchmarking services, we can address an increase in demand to provide the market participants with greater confidence when considering how digital assets are held securely within the custody environment, and how to choose the appropriately qualified custodian.”
