- This is the first acquisition deal for the crypto exchange headquartered in Vienna
- The exchange views the acquisition as a step toward its goal of debuting a Prime Brokerage service
Austrian cryptocurrency exchange Bitpanda has completed an acquisition deal for institutional-grade DeFi custodian wallet provider Trustology. Neither party revealed the specifics, but according to a source familiar with the developments, the deal is in the range of eight figures in US dollars.
This is the first acquisition the exchange has completed and represents a stride towards unveiling brokerage services under the Bitpanda Pro platform.
"The introduction of Bitpanda Custody is the first step in launching a Prime Brokerage offering under Bitpanda Pro to go alongside the regulated digital asset exchange. Bitpanda Pro will commit to a disruptive fee model aimed at bringing down the cost of custody to zero for customers who actively trade on our exchange and soon to be launched OTC desk."
Trustology is a crypto custodian operating in the UK, having secured full registration and approval from the UK Financial Conduct Authority last October. The acquisition places Bitpanda in a position to offer crypto custodial services.
Trustology will be rebranded to Bitpanda Custody
As part of the agreement, Trustology, which has a focus on the DeFi space, will take a new name, 'Bitpanda Custody', under the Bitpanda brand. The new entity will help the exchange move forward with its plans to introduce digital assets custody for its institutional investors.
Bitpanda will leverage Trustology's FCA registration to offer crypto custodial services across the UK while maintaining its operations in Europe. Bitpanda Custody will assume the custodial role for Bitpanda's existing retail customers and institutional businesses as a first move, making it one of the world's largest digital assets custodians.
Trustology's founder Alex Batlin, in a statement featured in the Tuesday PR, hailed Bitpanda's plans to advance institutional crypto custody.
Eric Demuth, Bitpanda CEO, noted that Trustology had developed an "exceptional custody technology," adding that the resulting entity will help the exchange achieve its goal of "building a leading, fully regulated and secure digital investment platform" that would accommodate all types of investors.
Worth noting, Bitpanda raised a significant amount of funds via a series of funding rounds last year. The exchange became the first FinTech unicorn in Austria after netting $170 million from its Series B funding round last March. It also closed a $263 million Series C closed in August, attaining a $4.1 billion valuation. The fundraising featured Peter Thiel's venture capital firm Valar Ventures.