Stephanie Douse 
The partnership between State Street and Copper grants the bank’s customers will be the ability to buy and hold a variety of popular cryptocurrencies.
State Street, a Boston-based bank holding company, has teamed up with crypto infrastructure provider “Copper” to offer institutional-grade digital asset custody to its customers.
The firm will offer custody services for several of the most “active” cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano, Solana, and Polkadot, pending regulatory approval.
About the partnership
According to a news release from State Street, “the business will harness its solid infrastructure and wide knowledge to assist customers in transitioning and thriving in the new digital economy.”
State’s cooperation with Copper demonstrates their willingness to utilise Copper’s current technology rather than repurposing their own organization to manage digital assets. Copper already has settlement mechanisms in place for over 40 exchanges and 450 different cryptocurrencies.
State Street’s CEO, Nadine Chakar, said his organization is establishing the infrastructure to accommodate their clients’ crypto allocations as the asset class grows in popularity.
Copper COO Sabrina Wilson, meanwhile, dubbed the alliance a “hugely important” move in terms of institutional crypto engagement.
According to a Fidelity survey from July of last year, 70% of institutional investors are interested in purchasing cryptocurrency in the future.
The CEO of SEBA bank forecast in January that institutional investments would drive the price of Bitcoin to $75,000 this year. For similar reasons, ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood is enthusiastic, predicting that Bitcoin can reach $500k if just 5% of institutional money enters the asset.
As of December 31st, 2021, State Street’s investment management division had $4.14 trillion in assets under management (AUM).