The Fusang Investment Office, an Asian-based fund management company is focusing on family businesses, plans to launch a cryptocurrency custody service in Hong Kong, according to the South China Morning Post on Sunday, July 22. The custody service, Fusang Vault, will maintain digital assets for clients, in addition to providing regular audits, according to Henry Chong, the company’s CEO. The service is scheduled to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2018.
In comparing digital assets to financial bonds, Chong noted the growing need to provide an independent third party to hold customers’ cryptocurrencies assets, as well as the demand for custodian banking services in conventional finance.
Chong stressed that, since the possession of digital assets lacks a record of ownership data, a cryptocurrency custody service is of “vital importance.”
Digital assets resemble bearer bonds, so whoever holds the security is presumed to be the owner and there is no record of ownership information about the security. Therefore, how we keep our digital assets protected is of the utmost importance.
Fusang Investment Office to launch a cryptocurrency custody platform for institutional investors such as Coinbase did
Fusang’s CEO added that the firm is already working with insurance companies to safeguard clients’ digital assets, without specifying the features of the next Fusang Vault service.
According to its website, the Fusang Investment Office is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and authorized by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission.
In early July, Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange platform, launched a cryptocurrency custody solution for institutional investors. The custody platform of Coinbase is operated by an independent member of the United States Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in compliance with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In general, cryptocurrency custody solutions aim to bring in more institutional investors in the cryptocurrencies market.
