New York-based investment bank Cowen (COWN) has unveiled a digital asset division, Cowen Digital LLC, which will offer full-service trade execution and custody solutions for institutional clients.

Cowen Managing Director Drew Forman will lead the new digital unit. Forman previously headed derivative sales and trading at the bank. Along with Cowen co-President Dan Charney, Forman told CoinDesk the launch has been a year in the making. “We will have [a] significant first mover advantage,” they said.
Further, they added, Cowen’s “more nimble, entrepreneurial culture” puts the bank at an advantage versus its larger bulge-bracket competitors.
Cowen’s move comes as more investment banks are using their positions to try bridging the gap between traditional capital markets and institutional crypto demands. Earlier this week, for instance, Goldman Sachs (GS) completed its first over-the-counter (OTC) cryptocurrency-related trade with former partner Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital.
Cowen’s Forman said the bank is already trading around 16 tokens including bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH), solana (SOL) and USD coin (USDC), and has a client list in the hundreds. In addition to trading, he said, being “thought leaders” for clients will also be part of the new unit’s mandate.
Custody will be handled by Standard Custody & Trust, a unit of digital asset infrastructure firm PolySign, in which Cowen made a $25 million strategic investment in May.

RFK Jr. Says He's 'Fully Committed' to Bitcoin; Jersey City to Invest in Bitcoin ETFs

00:57

What Do EigenLayer's Outflows of $2.3B Signal?

04:20

What Do TradFi Crypto Moves Mean for Decentralization?

02:02

Marathon Digital Buys $100M BTC; India's Special Task Force for Crypto-Related Drug Trafficking

00:53

Ether Slides as Grayscale's ETHE Outflows Ramp Up

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

Investment Bank Cowen Launches Digital Unit, Aims to Compete With Bulge-Bracket Firms

It’s the latest in a trend of traditional finance players spying opportunity in the cryptocurrency sector.

RFK Jr. Says He's 'Fully Committed' to Bitcoin; Jersey City to Invest in Bitcoin ETFs