ABU DHABI, UAE, May 7, 2026 – BNY (NYSE: BK), a global financial services company, together with Finstreet Limited and ADI Foundation, have announced a strategic collaboration that intends to offer regulated, scalable, institutional-grade digital asset custody anchored in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). Finstreet Limited (“Finstreet”), a digital market infrastructure group and a subsidiary of IHC through Sirius International Holding, and ADI Foundation, an Abu Dhabi-based sovereign-grade blockchain infrastructure organization, will jointly support this initiative.

Aligned with Abu Dhabi’s ambitions to shape the future of global finance, this milestone marks a significant step in the region’s digital finance advancement. By uniting BNY – the world’s number one custodian and first U.S. global systemically important bank (G-SIB) to offer digital asset custody – with the next-generation infrastructure of Finstreet and ADI Foundation, the initiative seeks to localize and elevate custody services from Abu Dhabi.

This strategic collaboration aims to accelerate the adoption of digital assets by UAE clients and offers access to a fully localized, secure, compliant and scalable digital asset custody solution. Through the integration of Finstreet’s advanced digital market ecosystem with ADI Foundation’s sovereign-grade blockchain infrastructure, BNY intends to extend its custody capabilities into a jurisdiction that has emphasized regulatory modernization and technological ambition.

The collaboration is initially focused on supporting digital asset custody such as Bitcoin and Ethereum for Finstreet’s clients and ecosystem, and later, the companies will explore an extension to ADI Foundation’s underlying blockchain rails. This marks a first step in Finstreet and ADI Foundation’s ambitions to progressively expand product scope to include stablecoins, tokenized real-world assets and other regulated digital instruments.

“This strategic collaboration is an important step in further cementing Abu Dhabi’s place as a global digital asset hub,” said Ajay Bhatia, Principal Council Member at ADI Foundation. “By combining the strength of Abu Dhabi’s advanced regulatory clarity with BNY’s globally recognized financial expertise and capabilities, ADI Chain — our sovereign-grade digital infrastructure — will unlock new opportunities in custody, trade finance, and lending from Abu Dhabi to the world.”

“The UAE is entering a new phase of financial development, characterized by deeper markets, greater digital sophistication and stronger global connectivity," said Hani Kablawi, Executive Vice Chair at BNY. “With our world-class capabilities and scale across capital markets, BNY is uniquely positioned to connect traditional and digital financial ecosystems in collaboration with our clients. Together with IHC and its subsidiaries Finstreet and ADI Foundation, we are proud to be building the financial infrastructure for the future and unlock new capabilities in the region and beyond.”

“With this strategic collaboration, Finstreet is expanding access to digital assets and blockchain technology as a trusted operating system for global markets,” commented Akshay Mahajan, Co-Founder & Group Director of Finstreet Limited. “As the primary access point for digital securities, Finstreet is the global gateway to Abu Dhabi’s financial ecosystem. This will help Abu Dhabi to continue to lead as a global center for digital financial solutions.”

Drawing on BNY’s global digital asset custody expertise and cutting-edge capabilities of Finstreet and ADI Foundation, this strategic collaboration represents a commitment to building robust market infrastructure that connects traditional institutional finance and the digital future.

All efforts are subject to definitive agreements and any relevant regulatory approvals, to be obtained or granted to relevant regulated subsidiaries and affiliates.

IHC along with other institutions recently announced the launch of a new Dirham-backed Stablecoin DDSC that is fully regulated by the Central Bank of the UAE and is currently progressing on governments and institutional adoption.

Re-disseminated by The Asian Banker