Nasdaq Inc. expects its custody services for digital assets to launch by the end of the second quarter as it joins a growing pool of traditional financial firms that could fill the role of crypto middlemen following a spate of bankruptcies in the industry.

The global exchange group is pushing ahead to get all the necessary technical infrastructure and regulatory approvals in place, Ira Auerbach, senior vice president and head of Nasdaq Digital Assets, said in an interview in Paris. Nasdaq has applied to the New York Department of Financial Services for a limited-purpose trust company charter, which would oversee the new business.

(By Anna Irrera)