BNY Mellon brings $59T custody giant to Abu Dhabi with full crypto and tokenization push!

The world's largest custodian bank is planting its flag in the Gulf. BNY — overseeing $59 trillion in assets under custody and administration — is partnering with Finstreet and ADI Foundation to build regulated digital asset infrastructure anchored in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the financial free zone that has become the Middle East's primary gateway for crypto and blockchain firms.

The initiative launches with custody services for bitcoin and ether, with a roadmap to expand into stablecoins and tokenized assets including bonds, funds, and equities. BNY executive vice chair Hani Kablawi framed the move as connecting traditional and digital financial ecosystems at scale — a credible claim given BNY was the first U.S. globally systemically important bank to launch digital asset custody.

The timing is deliberate. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have built regulatory frameworks explicitly…