PANews reported on July 2 that according to Finance Feeds, Zodia Custody, a subsidiary of Standard Chartered Bank, has completed the acquisition of Tungsten Custody Solutions, a licensed digital asset custody company in the UAE. This transaction enabled Zodia to obtain a financial license from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) and a preliminary license from the Dubai Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA), which will accelerate its institutional service layout in the Middle East.

Tungsten was originally incubated by Abu Dhabi digital asset investment institution Further Ventures, which will become a shareholder of Zodia through this transaction and continue to provide local resource support. Zodia has now obtained regulatory licenses in the UK, Ireland, Luxembourg and Hong Kong, and its shareholders include financial institutions such as Standard Chartered Ventures and Emirates National Bank.