Blockchain analytics firm Nansen claims that the multinational banking giant, DBS Bank of Singapore, is the owner of a crypto wallet holding more than 170,000 Ether, an amount valued at nearly $650 million. Nansen flagged the high-value Ethereum ‘whale’ as belonging to DBS, one of Singapore’s premier banks. The company’s estimate suggests that this cryptocurrency wallet-holder has already made a profit approaching $200 million simply by holding Ether.
While there’s been no official confirmation from DBS, this substantial Ether holding has led to speculation that these could be assets held by the bank’s digital exchange, which serves accredited investors. As one community member noted, the Ether held in the wallet might belong to investors and not constitute the bank’s own assets.
Analyst Edward Wilson from Nansen mentions that DBS holds the private key to this wallet and that it is likely a component of the bank’s custody solution. He draws parallels with how institutions generally, whether established in the crypto realm like Binance and Coinbase or others, hold funds on behalf of their users, taking on the responsibility for the security of these funds.
DBS Bank unveiled a cryptocurrency trade and custody service along with a platform for conducting security token offerings in 2020. At that time, the DBS Exchange stated it would not hold any assets but would provide investors with custody services.
DBS Bank’s crypto division has experienced significant growth since its inauguration. In 2022, the bank reported a four-fold increase in Bitcoin purchases on its digital exchange. The trading volume of Bitcoin increased by 80% in 2023, and the bank attributes this to the cryptocurrency market’s corrections seen in 2022. In addition to this, DBS Bank launched a digital yuan transaction tool in July 2023 conducted its first transaction for corporate clients.