FAB and Komainu Complete Two-Way Digital Asset Custody Transfers

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) and Komainu announced Nov. 3 that they had completed two-way transfers of a digital asset portfolio, bringing custody infrastructure for future institutional financing into operational use.

The transfers settled immediately and linked Komainu’s custody and connectivity services with infrastructure used by FAB Global Markets. The companies did not identify the client, name the assets or disclose the portfolio’s value.

The milestone marks an operational custody step, not a financing deal. FAB said its financing capabilities are available to institutional clients, but it is still working toward its first transactions. The announcements did not confirm that a borrower had received funding through the arrangement.

FAB identified digital asset-backed repurchase agreements as one possible use for portfolios transferred as collateral. Komainu described the framework as supporting future lending backed by digital assets held in regulated custody. Both are potential uses; neither announcement confirmed that a loan or repurchase agreement had taken place.

Komainu Group Managing Director Paul Frost-Smith said, “Banks need digital asset infrastructure that meets the same standards as the rest of their business.”

FAB placed the custody milestone within its broader digital asset program, which also includes tokenized deposit transactions with Citi through Swift Ledger and a digitally native green bond issued on Euroclear’s D-FMI. FAB did not provide a timeline for its first financing transactions.