Austria-based fintech unicorn, Bitpanda, announced its maiden acquisition with London-based crypto custodian wallet provider, Trustology. As per the deal, the latter would be rebranded as Bitpanda Custody and would be taking custody of Bitpanda’s own assets across its retail, institutional and white-labeling businesses at the initial stage.
Bitpanda claims the latest move would help catapult it as one of the largest digital assets custody providers on a global scale also enabling it to transform into a fully-fledged prime brokerage business. Through the acquisition, the trading platform will now be able to provide custodian services in the UK, EU, and says it will use the partnership to expand its range of services.
Eric Demuth, co-founder, and CEO of Bitpanda stated “We can now provide retail customers with world-class institutional-grade custody security. Institutional clients will benefit from innovative custody solutions to not only overcome the challenges they face today but also to thrive in the years to come.”
Joshua Barraclough, CEO of Bitpanda Pro- a platform for professionals and businesses, said that it aims to combine an FCA registered, institutional-grade custody solution with a leading trade execution venue.
Bitpanda aims to expands its footprint
Bitpanda Pro has also said it would commit to a “disruptive fee model” seeking to reduce the cost of custody to zero for users who actively trade on the exchange.
“Now we are looking to massively increase our footprint and bring lots more clients to our venues,” Barraclough continued. “Importantly we are moving away from an asset under custody pricing model and are not penalizing our clients’ growth.”
Founded in 2014 as a crypto trading firm, Bitpanda has grown to over 700 employees across 10 offices and boasts more than three million users. Investors can utilize the platform to purchase commission-free stocks, cryptocurrencies, and precious metals, at sums, starting as small as €1.
Following the acquisition announcement, UK’s top regulator Financial Conduct Authority [FCA] issued a word of caution on crypto mergers on Tuesday afternoon. The regulator in a statement warned that it “can take steps to suspend or cancel the registration of a crypto asset business if it is not satisfied the firm or its beneficial owner is fit and proper.”
