BNY provides BaaS infrastructure to WisdomTree

• Key Insight: BNY's A.M.P. BaaS platform is now powering WisdomTree's digital wallet app.
• What's At Stake: WisdomTree is "tokenizing" real-world assets and expanding its digital asset offerings.
• Expert Quote: Aaron McPherson: "BNY has been working on developing BaaS custody services as a strategic priority."

BNY has secured WisdomTree as its first retail digital assets client for its banking-as-a-service infrastructure platform.

WisdomTree, a global exchange-traded fund broker and investment platform, will be using BNY's BaaS platform A.M.P. as the core infrastructure behind its retail digital asset platform WisdomTree Prime.

"BNY is a leader for banks working with stablecoin issuers and brings unmatched trust and reliability as we grow our platform," said Will Peck, head of digital assets at WisdomTree.

WisdomTree primarily issues exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, but also offers mutual funds and other forms of assets for retail investing. The firm is currently focusing on using BNY's BaaS infrastructure to "tokenize" real-world assets onto a distributed ledger.

"We view tokenization of real-world assets as kind of the next evolution in investment management," Peck told American Banker. "It feels like a very natural progression from an ETF firm to one that's also focused on tokenized real world assets as well."

The investment platform's digital wallet app, WisdomTree Prime, will now provide U.S. retail investors with access to tokenized mutual funds and other real-world assets such as on-chain gold. The app is also launching stablecoin on and offramps via WisdomTree's stablecoin conversion service.

"As digital assets continue to converge with traditional finance, BNY is committed to serving as the bridge that supports this transformation," said Jennifer Barker, global head of treasury services and depositary receipts at BNY. "Our work with WisdomTree underscores how BNY's infrastructure and demonstrated track record of reliability and scale can help power the next generation of financial services."

BNY's A.M.P. core banking tech will provide banking functionality and blockchain rails to the WisdomTree Prime platform, enabling on and offramp capabilities between the traditional banking system and the app as they become available.

"What we're doing with WisdomTree is helping on the custody side, to support and safekeep the assets that are being tokenized," Carl Slabicki, BNY's executive platform owner of treasury services, told American Banker. "For the app we are providing infrastructure to help them open the accounts, perform due diligence on the customer, facilitate the money moving in and out and begin to move those assets to access tokenized money market funds [and] stablecoins."

Slabicki said that BNY has provided variations of BaaS to broker dealers and wealth managers since 1989, but the company is now looking to enter the retail and digital asset markets.

"The A.M.P. platform is helping pivot the same capability and expertise we've provided broker dealers and wealth managers into the fintech and digital asset space, to the players that are looking to provide those types of financial services into the consumer market," he said.

Slabicki believes that the nature of the partnership, where a well-established traditional firm like BNY keeps money in traditional custody and a digital assets firm like WisdomTree moves assets to distributed ledgers via tokenization, is a "bridge between these two worlds that we see is going to be happening in a lot of financial services over the coming years and over the next decade. There's more value and more safety by combining traditional financial assets with tokenization and the different things that WisdomTree brings to the table."

The BaaS infrastructure partnership is the latest stage in a longstanding partnership between BNY and WisdomTree. BNY has been serving as administrator, custodian and sub-adviser on select WisdomTree funds since the firm's founding 20 years ago, according to Peck. BNY is also the reserve custodian and banking partner for WisdomTree's USDW stablecoin.

According to American Banker's 2025 On-Chain Finance Report, corporate clients were the top consumer base for offering access to stablecoins, with 54% of respondents in agreement. Institutional clients and small/medium business clients, with 38% each respectively, were the next most popular groups of clients for offering stablecoin access. By comparison, only 15% of respondents said they planned to offer retail clients access to stablecoins.

AFM Consulting principal Aaron McPherson told American Banker that he also hasn't seen as much retail demand for stablecoins and other forms of on-chain finance as he has institutional demand. However, he has seen a growing international market for stablecoins, and believes that retail demand within the U.S. could eventually follow suit.

"There's definitely a trend of traditional financial institutions like BNY tying up with crypto-based fintechs to gain a presence in that market to be ready when the demand arrives," McPherson said.

Separately from stablecoins, McPherson also noted that on-chain finance is a major part of BNY's new BaaS offerings and its overall strategy to enter the digital assets space.

"BNY has been working on developing BaaS custody services as a strategic priority," McPherson said. "With the passage of the GENIUS Act and the easing of regulatory strictures, it's become a lot more attractive for banks like BNY to get into this. It's a revenue opportunity, but it's also a defensive play to make sure that they're part of whatever this becomes. If finance is moving on a chain, they want to have a presence there."

BNY's chief product and innovation officer, Carolyn Weinberg, said at American Banker's Most Powerful Women In Banking Conference earlier this month that BNY is leaning into blockchain infrastructure and digital assets to enable "faster, better, more efficient systems for our clients."