Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) and BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) established a partnership Thursday to give institutional investors access to cryptocurrencies, beginning with bitcoin.
Through integration with Coinbase Prime, which will enable premium trading, custody, brokerage orders, and reporting in cryptocurrency, institutional clients of Aladdin, BlackRock’s end-to-end investment management platform, will have direct access to bitcoin. Users must be Aladdin and Coinbase clients.
“Our institutional customers are increasingly interested in exposure to digital asset markets and are focused on how to efficiently manage the operational lifetime of these assets,” said Joseph Chalom, BlackRock’s Global Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships.
Coinbase and investment management BlackRock have stated that they would work together to expand the platform’s integration and will gradually roll out capabilities to interested clients.
Following the news, Coinbase shares increased by more than 25% in Thursday trade.
