The global digital asset ecosystem is rapidly maturing, with institutional investors, custodians, and financial service providers increasingly seeking robust, scalable, and compliant security frameworks. Yet, the industry continues to battle evolving threats, from sophisticated cyberattacks to insider risks and governance failures. So, for institutions managing billions in digital assets, what should institutional-grade digital asset security look like? At Ledger Enterprise, we believe it should combine advanced hardware protection, robust governance frameworks, and operational efficiency into a holistic, future-proof solution.

The Institutional Digital Asset Landscape

The daily volume of digital asset spot trading exceeded $1 trillion in August this year, while Bitcoin & Ethereum ETF net inflows recorded a high of $11 billion in July [1]. At the same time, the asset tokenisation market is projected to grow from a value of approximately $2 trillion in 2025 to over $13.5 trillion by 2030 [2]. 

This activity reflects an explosion in institutional participation in digital assets, from hedge funds and exchanges to pension funds and corporates, broadly driven by three factors:

• Increasing mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies and tokenised assets.

• Rising client demand for exposure to digital assets.

• Evolving regulatory clarity across jurisdictions.

Yet, as institutional adoption of digital assets has accelerated, so have the associated security risks of custody, not just from increasingly sophisticated external hackers but equally from insiders, governance loopholes, and operational missteps.

“Institutional investors are expressing a growing desire for exposure to digital assets, while the proportion of AUM allocated to cryptocurrencies is increasing all the time.” Sebastien Badault, Ledger VP of Enterprise.