In a bid to meet increasing levels of compliance and tackle security issues, cryptocurrency custodian services are on the rise. Aiming to offer stronger safeguards with better insurance mechanisms, custodian services for both institutional and individual investors are becoming a prominent feature in the crypto landscape.

But which Bitcoin custodian services should you be concerning yourself with in 2019? Let’s take a look at the current best options.

One of the most mature custodian services, BitGo has been on the scene since 2013. Offering institutional-grade custody policy controls, BitGo’s proven cold storage tech is housed in bank-grade Class III vaults, while all funds are cryptographically secured and insured.

Fee: Custom

No of Digital Assets Supported: 100+

Top Features:

Bank-grade cold storage protection

Institutional-grade custody policy controls

$100 million insurance

24/7 support

Multi-use accounts

Multiple approval safeguards

Whitelists

Spending limits

Associated with the leading exchange and wallet, Coinbase Custodian is a standalone entity to safeguard institutional investment funds. Used by Polychain Capital, a16zcrypto, Prime Factor Capital and more, Coinbase Custody boasts bank-grade segregated cold storage, providing all clients with asset insurance and round-the-clock customer support.

Fee: Custom implementation fee ($0-$10K), 50 bps custody fee, and $1M minimum balance

No of Digital Assets Supported: 34

Top Features:

100% bank-grade segregated cold storage

All funds are insured

24/7 support

Customized reporting

Audited statements

4-Hour withdrawal SLAs

Multi-user accounts and multi-signature transactions

Having acquired Digital Asset Custody Company (DACC), Bakkt has launched its own crypto storage solutions. Designed for both personal and institutional clients, Bakkt Warehouse is the newest addition to crypto custodianship. Providing dual wallet technology, Bakkt Warehouse features ‘warm’ online and ‘airgapped’ offline storage. Currently free to use, Bakkt Warehouse already has a plethora of global institutional users such as Patera Capital and Galaxy Digital.

Fee: ‘Fee Holiday’ until June 2020

No of Digital Assets Supported: Only BTC

Top Features:

Regulated and Certified by the New York Department of Financial Services

$125 million insurance policy

BTC withdrawals in 1 day or less

Online and offline storage options

Available for both institutional and individual investors

Providing institutional custody solutions for Bitcoin, Fidelity Digital Assets offers enterprise-grade security for custody and execution services. Priding themselves on their multidisciplinary approach, Fidelity Digital Assets boasts a highly experienced and skilled team of financial and technological experts.

Fee: Custom

No of Digital Assets Supported: Only BTC

Top Features:

Offline vaulted deep-cold storage

Heavily physical security

Enterprise-grade cyber and operational security controls

24/7 Support

Multidisciplinary approach for tailormade custodianship solutions

Recently acquired by Coinbase, Xapo is a user-friendly custodian wallet for individual investors. One of the oldest Bitcoin wallets, Xapo enables users to store FIAT and BTC in cold storage. Backed by a myriad of big investors, such as Pantera Capital, Fortress, and Greylock Partners, funds stored on Xapo are fully insured against hacking and bankruptcy.

Fee: Free setup, no Xapo fees (only bank processing fees)

No of Digital Assets Supported: BTC and FIAT

Top Features:

User-friendly app

Insured against hacks and Xapo going bankrupt

Cold storage protected by armed guards, surveillance, and biometric locks

Free to use

Multi-signature transactions and withdrawal

Crypto exchange, Gemini, offers custodian services aimed at institutional investors With a multi-layer security architecture comprising of ‘HardwareSecurity Molecules (HSM), Gemini provides offline storage for funds and private keys that meets the highest US government security rating. Gemini’s industry-grade security gives top-level investors a complaint and user-friendly environment for storing large sums of crypto.

Fee: Free setup and no minimum, custom fees

No of Digital Assets Supported: 17

Top Features:

Same day withdrawals

Instant liquidity for trading on Gemini’s exchange

Distributed, heavily guarded, airgapped ‘Hardware Security Molecules’

User-friendly platform

24/7 support and dedicated account representatives

New York-based itBit has been providing crypto-asset custodian services on a global scale since 2012. The company’s institutional 100% cold storage solutions are customized on a per-client basis, complemented with verification and asset audit reporting.

Fee: Custom

No of Digital Assets Supported: Only 5

Top Features:

Long-standing reputation for security

100% cold storage solutions/li>

24/7 support

1-2-1 assigned account managers Monday-Friday

Focusing on leveraging tech to provide dynamic custody solutions, Kingdom Trust has been on the scene since 2010. Catering to institutional investors, Kingdom Trust works with hedge funds, banks, family offices, RIAS, and so on.

Fee: Custom

No of Digital Assets Supported: Not disclosed

Top Features:

100% cold storage solution for institutional investors

Fully insured

Exclusive and discrete

Fully compliant and regularly audited

What Bitcoin custodian services did we miss? Let us know on Twitter.