Solana Custodian Marinade Sees Huge Growth Potential in Crypto Custody

According to Bloomberg, Marinade's Chief Business Officer Hadley Stern stated that custody costs in the cryptocurrency space are ten times higher than those for traditional assets like securities and cash. This makes it a potential growth area, attracting startups, Wall Street banks, and others looking to enter the digital asset space. Stern previously led digital asset custody at BNY Mellon in New York.

So far, crypto-native companies like Coinbase Global Inc. and BitGo Inc. have been the dominant service providers, while traditional financial companies have mostly been in holding mode due to concerns over regulatory uncertainty surrounding digital assets.

While the current custody market is only around $300 million, the business remains attractive, with companies like Fireblocks Inc. estimating an annual growth rate of around 30%. Top custodial banks BNY Mellon, State Street Corp., and Citigroup Inc. have already made initial forays into cryptocurrency custody or have expressed interest in doing so.