Citigroupâs wealth management division has formed a Digital Assets Group, according to an internal memo shared with CoinDesk.
âFocusing on all aspects of this fast-growing space of blockchain enabled finance,â the unit will be helmed by Alex Kriete and Greg Girasole of the bankâs Citi Global Wealth Investments (CGWI) arm. The Block first reported the news.
Girasoleâs LinkedIn profile describes him as a âBlockchain enthusiast and Crypto Asset investorâ with a certificate from 2018 to prove it.
âAlex and Greg will be responsible for advancing the efforts of CGWI to become a market leading partner for our clients interested in all aspects of the digital asset spaceâ such as cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFT), stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDC), according to the memo signed by Citiâs Iain Armitage, global head of capital markets, and Rob Jasminski, global head, Citi Investment Management.
In a May interview with the Financial Times, Citiâs global head of foreign exchange, Itay Tuchman, said the bank had seen a âvery rapidâ uptick in client interest in bitcoin since last August.
According to Thursdayâs memo, the CGWI Digital Assets Group will liaise with âother business groups at Citi [that] are expanding into this rapidly emerging space also.â
Danny Nelson contributed reporting.