Komainu, a digital custodian focused on the institutional market, has entered the Japanese investment market after teaming up with local crypto assets vendor called Crypto Garage. The two firms have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore the development of a joint venture offering Japanese investors a digital custody service. Komainu is partly owned by Japanese investment bank Nomura, along with digital asset manager CoinShares and crypto security firm Ledger. According to Komainu’s president and acting CEO Henson Orser, the Japanese market is currently underserved in terms of service providers for the digital assets market. “The evolution of digital assets is changing the financial ecosystem and Komainu is building out custody solutions as well as additional services to provide institutions with the support they need throughout the entire custody process,” he added. Komainu is registered in Jersey and in April this year raised $25 million in a Series A funding round led by British billionaire Alan Howard. Komainu also recently appointed ex-Nomura man Sebastian Widmann as head of strategy. Crypto Garage is a Japan-based digital assets platform that offers trading and settlement for crypto assets. In June 2021, the company registered with the Kanto Finance Bureau as a crypto asset exchnage, which allows it to act as intermediary in transactions between local crypto trading firms and cover companies. ©2021 funds global asia