Bakkt Announces $500M Crypto Custody Insurance and Onboards 70 New Clients

Bakkt partners with insurance firm Marsh to expand its insurance coverage. 

Bitcoin futures platform, Bakkt, has announced it is extending institutional custody insurance coverage.

The platform, unveiled in August 2018, offers a custodial solution for ICE’s Bitcoin futures exchange and has also struck a partnership with Marsh, a well-established insurance broker.

The partnership between Bakkt Warehouse and Marsh sees the crypto custody platform increase its insurance coverage from $125 million to over $600 million.

According to Bakkt, customers purchasing the coverage will be able to access “supplemental insurance” on top of the $125 million the company already has in place.

Marsh is a leading insurance brokerage provider that has offered its services to several companies in the crypto space, including Ledger and Crypto.com.

White also said that developments in the space underscored the need to continue making digital assets accessible in an environment of trust. This, he added, would expand crypto’s reach to “consumers, merchants, and institutions.”

The platform also announced that it recently conducted and completed a SOC 1 Type I examination carried out by auditing giant KPMG. The company also had a SOC 2 Type II examination conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers. These evaluations help to gauge a company’s financial controls, as well as their protection of customer data.

Adam White noted that auditing was a key factor in its engagement with institutional customers.

Bakkt eyes retail adoption of crypto

Bakkt is also continuing to develop a mobile application, which will help the company reach a retail market of more than 30 million customers.

Work on the app is in the advanced stages; with Bakkt expecting to launch by end of the year. As per the company’s blog post, the venture has already seen Bakkt find partners with two more financial institutions.

The ICE-operated platform says the app will make it easier to use crypto to pay for everyday expenses. Bakkt has partnered with Starbucks and recently acquired Bridge2 Solutions; decisions the platform hopes will be instrumental to the broader adoption of crypto.