State Street, Citigroup, BNY Stocks Edge Higher On Crypto Custody Plans — But Retail Remains Unmoved

State Street Corp. (STT) shares rose 0.5% on Friday and Citigroup Inc. (C) climbed 2.5% following a report from The Information suggesting that both banking giants are preparing to launch cryptocurrency custody services.

The report also noted that Bank of New York Mellon (BK), which already has a limited custody service for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), is planning to expand its services to support additional digital assets. 

BNY Mellon's stock gained over 1% in response.

Bank of New York Mellon Sentiment and Message Volume on Feb.14 as of 1:25 p.m. ET | Source: Stocktwits

BNY Mellon's stock has been the best performer among the three, climbing 61% over the past year and gaining 15% in the past month. 

Despite its strong performance, retail sentiment on Stocktwits remained ‘neutral,’ with ‘extremely low’ levels of engagement.

State Street Sentiment and Message Volume on Feb.14 as of 1:25 p.m. ET | Source: Stocktwits

Meanwhile, retail sentiment around State Street worsened to ‘neutral’ from being ‘bullish’ a day ago as chatter dipped ‘extremely low’ levels. 

State Street is expected to roll out its digital asset custody offering next year. It currently manages three actively traded digital asset and disruptive technology-focused ETFs, sub-advised by Galaxy Asset Management. 

State Street’s stock is up 38% over the past year, with a 4.9% gain in the past month.

Citigroup is considering launching similar services either by developing them internally or through external partnerships, according to the report.

The bank has already unveiled its CIDAP digital asset platform, which provides crypto-safeguarding technology for institutional clients. 

Citi’s website revealed that it has also explored a pilot program focused on tokenizing private markets.

Citigroup Sentiment and Message Volume on Feb.14 as of 1:30 p.m. ET | Source: Stocktwits

Retail sentiment around Citigroup remained in the ‘neutral’ zone with a negligible level of chatter. 

The stock has gained 46% year-to-date, including a 14% rise over the past month.

The growing interest from major U.S. banks in crypto services comes as regulatory sentiment shifts under President Donald Trump, regarded as the first pro-crypto U.S. president.

His administration’s push for clearer digital asset regulations has fueled optimism among financial institutions and investors alike.

The Federal Reserve recently repealed an accounting rule that previously required banks to classify cryptocurrency and other digital assets as liabilities on their balance sheets, further opening the door for financial institutions to engage with digital assets.

The launch of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs in 2024 has also contributed to the sector’s expansion, with institutions seeing strong inflows into these products since their debut.

Despite the banking sector's increasing engagement with crypto, retail sentiment reflects little enthusiasm.

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