Coinbase and Standard Chartered Forge Deeper Institutional Crypto Alliance

In a significant move for the institutional adoption of digital assets, Standard Chartered and Coinbase have announced a substantial expansion of their strategic partnership. This enhanced collaboration is squarely aimed at fortifying and broadening the suite of crypto services available to institutional clients, with a core focus on three critical pillars: trading, custody, and lending. By merging Standard Chartered's robust, globally recognized banking infrastructure and regulatory expertise with Coinbase's advanced, institutional-grade digital asset platform, the alliance is engineered to deliver secure, scalable, and fully compliant solutions for professional digital asset management. This development builds directly upon the foundational work the two financial giants have already undertaken together in the progressive regulatory environment of Singapore, signaling a concerted push to meet the growing sophistication and demand from corporations, hedge funds, and family offices seeking reliable entry points into the cryptocurrency ecosystem. The partnership underscores a maturing market where traditional finance (TradFi) pillars are actively integrating with leading crypto-native entities to bridge the trust and infrastructure gap, potentially paving the way for more streamlined capital flows and sophisticated financial products in the digital asset space. As of December 2025, this deepened tie-up represents a bullish indicator for the sector's institutional trajectory, highlighting the ongoing convergence between legacy banking systems and the innovative frameworks of cryptocurrency exchanges.

Standard Chartered and Coinbase Deepen Crypto Partnership for Institutional Clients

Standard Chartered and Coinbase have expanded their collaboration to bolster institutional crypto services, focusing on trading, custody, and lending. The partnership leverages Standard Chartered’s banking infrastructure and Coinbase’s institutional platform to create compliant solutions for digital asset management.

The alliance builds on their existing work in Singapore, aiming to provide secure, scalable infrastructure for institutional investors entering the crypto space. Services will include prime brokerage, staking, and cross-border settlement capabilities.

This MOVE signals growing institutional demand for regulated crypto access. By combining traditional finance expertise with crypto-native technology, the partnership seeks to bridge gaps in institutional-grade digital asset services.

Barclays Forecasts Challenging 2026 for Crypto Markets Amid Cooling Volumes

Barclays has issued a sobering outlook for cryptocurrency markets in 2026, predicting declining trading volumes and a lack of catalysts to reignite activity. The bank's analysis points to sustained pressure on exchange revenues as spot trading cools across major platforms.

Coinbase and Robinhood face particular headwinds, with Barclays slashing Coinbase's price target to $291. Regulatory clarity from the CLARITY Act may emerge as a bright spot, though tokenization projects remain too nascent to impact near-term earnings.

The report underscores a broader market inflection point. "Crypto will face a down year in 2026," Barclays warns, noting the absence of compelling narratives to drive retail participation. This comes as exchange metrics show weakening demand across both spot and derivative markets.