BNY Mellon Builds Crypto Custody Empire Amid AI Token Backlash
Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) is taking an unconventional approach to artificial intelligence (AI) by prioritizing tangible outcomes over token metrics. Unlike some big tech companies, BNY's CFO Dermot McDonogh says they don't track how many AI prompts their employees fire off, as token costs are 'modest within modest' relative to broader engineering spend.
BNY spent $3.8 billion on technology in 2025, accounting for 19% of its total revenue. The bank is focused on revenue growth and boosting per-employee performance despite recent workforce reductions. In contrast to some companies that have turned token consumption into a status symbol, BNY's approach has not emphasized leaderboards or usage metrics.
BNY has been quietly building its crypto custody empire, launching its US digital asset custody platform in October 2022 for select institutional clients. The bank is set to introduce its Digital Asset Data Insights platform in April 2025, with BlackRock's tokenized fund signed on as the first client. BNY also plans to offer Bitcoin and Ether custody services in the UAE in 2026 through strategic partnerships.
The custodian layer is a critical piece of institutional crypto adoption, with regulated custody from trusted counterparties being essential for pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and large asset managers. By providing data infrastructure beneath BlackRock's tokenized fund, BNY demonstrates its commitment to tokenization as more than just a buzzword.