Julius Baer is to offer clients digital asset investment opportunities through a collaboration with Swiss startup Seba Crypto.
The Swiss private bank says it is responding to growing client demand for the capability to store, trade and invest in digital assets.
Peter Gerlach, head markets at Julius Baer, says: “At Julius Baer, we are convinced that digital assets will become a legitimate sustainable asset class of an investor’s portfolio."
The deal is conditional on Seba - in which Julius Baer holds a minority equity stake - being granted a banking and securities dealing licence by financial markets regulator Finma.
Founded in April 2018 by former UBS bankers, Seba is expected to be one of the first start-ups in the crypto space to close the regulatory gap between conventional and digital assets. The firm closed a $100 million funding round in September and plans to launch its own cryptocurrency via an initial coin offering in the third quarter this year. Go live is slated for the second quarter.