Northern Trust Opens Doors to Cryptocurrency Hedge Funds As Part Of Pervasive Blockchain…

Financial services giant Northern Trust has significantly expanded its work with blockchain and cryptocurrencies across multiple divisions.

In addition to adding a number of new blockchain features for managing its private equity workflow, the company, which has almost $10.7 trillion in assets under custody and management, has also quietly opened its fund administration services to a select group of hedge funds betting on bitcoin and ethereum.

These potentially groundbreaking projects amount to one of the most significant pushes into cryptocurrency and other assets encrypted on a blockchain by a traditional financial institution.

In an exclusive interview with Forbes, the president of Northern Trust’s corporate and institutional services, Pete Cherecwich, provided an unprecedented look into the breadth of his company’s work with blockchain. But perhaps more importantly, he explained why the 129-year-old institution was committing so…