Nisha Surendran, Head of Digital Asset Custody Development at Citibank, announced at an industry event hosted by Strategy that Citibank plans to integrate Bitcoin into its core banking business later in 2026, offering institutional-grade custody services, key management, and a wallet system. The platform will extend traditional tax reporting, compliance, and risk management processes to Bitcoin holdings, and will support 24/7 operation, SWIFT global transfer messaging, and API connectivity. Citibank currently manages approximately $30 trillion in assets, and this move aims to remove operational barriers to crypto assets for institutional investors such as pension funds and insurance companies. Surendran stated that the initial phase will focus on core custody functions, with subsequent expansion to include asset segregation and collateral management services.