Zodia Custody has partnered with Programmable Credit Protocol (PCP) to add custody-native credit functions to its institutional custody platform. The setup enables banks to lend and borrow against digital and tokenised assets while the collateral remains in custody.
The integration is built into Solutions by Zodia Custody, a technology and infrastructure platform used by financial institutions for digital asset custody. It keeps collateral in the same environment where assets are safeguarded, while programmable rules govern credit workflows.
Tokenised real-world assets (RWAs) have become a larger part of the on-chain market as banks and asset managers test blockchain-based products. Market data cited by the companies puts the on-chain RWA market at USD $23.6 billion in 2026. Meanwhile, large custodians and infrastructure providers are expanding beyond storage and settlement as institutional demand shifts towards broader balance-sheet use cases.
Credit in custody
Under the partnership, PCP's credit-orchestration infrastructure is embedded within Zodia Custody's Solutions platform. The design centres on secured lending, where the borrower's collateral remains in custody. It brings credit controls closer to the custody layer, where institutions already manage asset protection, access policies and operational processes.
The firms describe PCP as a credit messaging infrastructure for secured digital and tokenised-asset lending. In practice, credit terms, margining and lifecycle events can be managed through programmable workflows rather than manual processes that often rely on off-platform reconciliation.
Zodia Custody's shareholders include Standard Chartered, Northern Trust, SBI Holdings, National Australia Bank and Emirates NBD. The provider operates across multiple regions, and its Solutions offering is used by financial institutions in Europe, the US, the Middle East and Asia.
For banks, the attraction is the ability to run secured credit against tokenised instruments and digital assets while keeping operational controls in a single environment. This structure reduces the need to move collateral between platforms, a step that can introduce settlement friction and operational risk.
Operational shifts
The integration is designed to replace slow, manual credit management with faster, more automated processes. It also allows tokenised assets to serve as collateral and deposits, enabling them to be used as settlement currency, positioning the model as a bridge between traditional finance and decentralised finance while maintaining regulatory compliance.
Institutional interest in tokenisation has increased across tokenised securities, tokenised deposits and stablecoins. As these instruments become more common, custody platforms are under pressure to manage not only safekeeping but also the operational flows associated with collateral management, liquidity, and credit.
"Our Solutions offering has always been focused on delivering institutional-grade solutions to our global banking clients, and empowering them to operate secure, scalable digital assets custody for their own clients. Custody infrastructure must evolve beyond safekeeping and support capital efficiency. This is why we've partnered with PCP. Enhancing our services to now be able to offer programmable secured credit workflows directly from custody represents a clear evolution in our Solutions services and ability to support institutions in handling digital assets," said Julian Sawyer, Chief Executive Officer at Zodia Custody.
PCP said its model keeps collateral locked in the borrower's wallet, while margining, liquidation and lifecycle management are handled programmatically. SemiLiquid Tech Labs develop PCP.
"Zodia Custody has built the custody platform that banks trust with their digital and tokenised assets. By embedding PCP directly into that stack, banks don't just safeguard - they can extend credit. PCP is the infrastructure enabling these credit workflows, rather than a separate platform. Zodia Custody choosing to embed PCP across their entire platform is a signal that the market is ready for custody-native credit," said Rico van der Veen, CEO of PCP.
Canton pilot
Zodia Custody said it is participating in PCP's pilot with the Canton Network Foundation, focused on custody-native programmable credit workflows for banks. It stated that it is the only custodian participating. The work links to broader activity within the Canton ecosystem centred on collateral utility for tokenised assets.
Standard Chartered has projected that tokenised asset markets could reach USD $30 trillion by 2034. The forecast has been cited across the sector as banks assess whether tokenisation will change the economics of issuance, settlement, collateral management and secured financing.
The partnership adds to a growing set of initiatives that position custody as a base layer for additional services. The next phase for Zodia Custody and PCP is adoption by banks already using Solutions by Zodia Custody, with custody-native credit framed as a workflow that sits alongside existing custody, treasury and settlement operations.