OKCoin Invests in Cryptocurrency Custodian Prime Trust

In a message sent to customers on Thursday, custody services provider Prime Trust said that it had received investment from cryptocurrency exchange OKCoin.

Prime Trust’s chief executive officer, Scott Purcell, said that it had closed a “nice” funding round with OKCoin being the largest investor.

According to CoinDesk, other investors included Gateway Blockchain Blockchain Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned). In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data, making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamp Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned). In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data, making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tamp Read this Term Partners, Novablock Ventures and Xsquared Ventures.

Prime Trust did not disclose how much money it had raised, with Purcell saying that he would not be providing any details of the round of funding raising.

Based in Nevada, the custodial services provider launched last July.

Initially providing Cold Storage Cold Storage Cold storage is a computer system or mode of operation that is designed for the retention of inactive data, in this case private keys for cryptocurrencies. This helps put up resilient barriers against theft by hackers and malware, and is often a necessary security protocol especially dealing with large amounts of Bitcoin.In order to “own” a cryptocurrency, one must be in control of a cryptocurrency’s private keys. As such, private keys are long strings of random characters that can be used to se Cold storage is a computer system or mode of operation that is designed for the retention of inactive data, in this case private keys for cryptocurrencies. This helps put up resilient barriers against theft by hackers and malware, and is often a necessary security protocol especially dealing with large amounts of Bitcoin.In order to “own” a cryptocurrency, one must be in control of a cryptocurrency’s private keys. As such, private keys are long strings of random characters that can be used to se Read this Term custody solutions for bitcoin, the company then branched out into providing similar services for tokens based on the ether blockchain.

More deals ahead

In January, the firm made headlines when it announced it would cease charging custodian fees for its services.

It’s unclear as to how it plans on making money.

When the announcement was made, Purcell noted that most custodians don’t charge fees for their services.

That’s true, but they also engage in other activities - lending securities or acting as a brokerage for instance.

As of yet, however, Prime Trust doesn’t offer those services.

The news that OKCoin has invested in the firm follows a similar announcement made last month.

OK Group - the owner of OKCoin - and Prime Trust said that they would be working together to build a USD-based stable coin.

That is likely an indicator as to how Prime Trust will go about supporting its free custodial services.

Expect to see more of such initiatives between the two firms in the future.