Apollo Global Management to hold institutional crypto assets through partnership with Anchorage

Apollo Global Management, a leading private equity firm with $513 billion in assets under management, has begun to custody institutional cryptocurrency assets through partnering with regulated crypto platform Anchorage Digital, according to an Oct. 31 Anchorage Digital blog post.

The partnership will see Anchorage hold 'a significant portion' of Apollo's digital-asset portfolio.

Adam Eling, COO of Digital Assets at Apollo, explained its firm selected Anchorage as it would help Apollo operate under regulatory oversight, secure and segregate client assets and inspire more creative blockchain technology use cases across its business.

Secure sub-custody services

Anchorage leverages hardware security module (HSM), a device for provisioning cryptographic keys for encryption, decryption, and authentication for accessing applications, databases, and identities.

Anchorage's HSM is strengthened by a rigorous authentication standard that sees all sensitive data, such as withdrawals, policy changes, and new user additions, approved by multiple designated approvers with layers of biometrics, behavioral analytics, and cryptographic signatures on top of a transaction review system.

First federally chartered digital asset bank

Founded in 2017, Anchorage is the first federally chartered digital asset bank in the U.S. since it was granted approval for a national trust charter and the creation of Anchorage Digital Bank Association by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, on Jan. 13, 2021.

The title grants Anchorage fiduciary powers and meets the definition of a qualified custodian, paving a path for traditional institutions to comply with federal law while supporting their development of financial products.

Qualified custody is the secure storage of assets as defined by its strict adherence to SEC guidelines for keeping institutional assets safe and secure. The assets include tangible items like gold or stock certificates or intangible assets like cryptocurrency.

Anchorage's suite of services caters to traditional banks, which includes sub-custody, regulatory compliance, product breadth, and client support.

Photo: Anchorage