Nevermind the Ripple lawsuit: Digivault becomes first accredited custodian to support XRP
The value of digital assets along with the technology infrastructure that it supports can no longer be ignored, as reflected in the landmark increases in cryptocurrency participation we saw in 2021.
Digivault, the digital asset custody business within Nasdaq-listed cryptocurrency exchange, has achieved a 30-fold increase in assets under custody in the 2021 calendar year.
The crypto custodian, which already supported 50 tokens, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Polkadot (DOT), has now added Ripple (XRP) to its assets under custody.
XRP, the embattled crypto
The timing is quite interesting as the company doesn’t seem to be concerned with the potential repercussions stemming from the ongoing SEC v. Ripple lawsuit.
Crypto exchanges, such as Coinbase, and digital currency asset managers, such as Grayscale, dumped XRP at lightning speed once the Securities and Exchange Commission filed the complaint against Ripple Labs and executives Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen on 22 December 2020.
The crypto exchange landscape in the United States hasn’t changed since then. XRP lost all its prior significance in the trading arena in this jurisdiction and it is expected to remain that way until the lawsuit ends either by settlement or by court ruling.
Digivault, however, has decided to go the other way and added XRP to its list of assets under custody as it faces strong demand for it, especially since partnering with Asset Reality, which has opened the doors to a wider customer base, including sophisticated investors, family offices, fund managers, and also law enforcement agencies and governments.
Robert Cooper, Digivault CEO said, “The value of digital assets along with the technology infrastructure that it supports can no longer be ignored, as reflected in the landmark increases in cryptocurrency participation we saw in 2021. But this increase in participation also put the spotlight on the risks of security breaches and hacks. Our business growth reflects this growing awareness by industry participants to be far more discerning in choosing accredited and regulated service providers”.
“In the year ahead, we will maintain our focus on lifting the industry standards, driving greater awareness of ways to safely participate in the marketplace and by protecting our customers by continuing to expand the list of assets we are able to securely store for them.”
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First accredited custodian in the UK
Digivault is unlikely to offer its services to US enterprises for the time being given the current standstill in the country. The custodian, however, has a large market to attend to as the United Kingdom remains one of world’s largest financial centers as well as Singapore, where EQONEX is headquartered.
Digivault is the first standalone custodian to be FCA Registered under the crypto asset regime. The custodian uses FIPS14-2 validated hardware security modules (HSMs).
The solution is Cyber Essentials Plus accredited (a Ministry of Defence designed accreditation) and is certified under IS027001 standard. Both Helios (Warm Solution and Kelvin (Cold Solution) and penetration-test to CREST standards of certification.
Digivault also uses an enhanced certificate standard for communicating public keys, multi-factor authentication, and a full backup/recovery system.
The EQONEX group encompasses cryptocurrency exchange EQONEX, an over-the-counter trading platform, a front-to-back integrated trading platform, Access Trading, a securitization advisory service EQONEX Capital, hot and cold custodian Digivault, and asset manager Bletchley Park.
