Zodia Custody appoints former Bitstamp exec Julian Sawyer as CEO
Quick Take
- London-based crypto custodian Zodia Custody has appointed Julian Sawyer, the former Bitstamp CEO and co-founder of Starling Bank, as its CEO.
- Zodia is a subsidiary of UK investment bank Standard Chartered and is backed by Northern Trust.
London-based crypto custodian Zodia Custody, a subsidiary of UK investment bank Standard Chartered, has appointed Julian Sawyer as its CEO.
He will take over the role from Maxime de Guillebon, who previously worked at SC Ventures, Standard Chartered’s innovation and ventures unit, according to a statement.
Sawyer departed from the role of CEO at crypto exchange Bitstamp in May 2022. He's also the co-founder of UK fintech startup Starling Bank, where he acted as chief operating officer for four years.
The appointment follows Zodia's recent announcement that it's rolling out a service that aims to protect client assets from exchange insolvency.
"As Zodia Custody enters its next stage of growth to meet client and market demand, Julian’s experience in scaling up financial services companies will be invaluable," the company said in the press release.
SC Ventures partnered with Northern Trust to begin working on Zodia in December 2020. Chicago-based Northern Trust held $12.8 trillion in assets under custody as of September 2022, according to its website. The startup is registered with the FCA as a crypto asset business.
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