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Onramp MENA
Research

Long-form analysis on Bitcoin: the asset, its custody, and the institutional case.

Onramp MENA's analytical work on Bitcoin: the asset class, its custody, the regulatory frameworks, and the strategic considerations facing institutions and family offices that hold it. Each piece is cited to primary sources, written for readers preparing their own analysis.

Published
  1. Three identical brushed-steel cubes in a row on a dark surface, toned navy: distributed, independent, equal.
    Custody 21-minute read

    How to hold Bitcoin

    Regulated access to Bitcoin is solved; custody is not. A single custodian safekeeps over 80% of the Bitcoin behind US spot ETFs, the dominant failure mode across the ecosystem is the compromise of private keys, and a decade of insolvencies has shown that "custodied" can legally mean "unsecured creditor." Every exposure vehicle and custody model is scored on one rubric, making the bounded case that, for a fiduciary holding for resilience, custody distributed across independent institutions is the right default.

    BitcoinCustodyMulti-institution custodyInstitutionalETFsSelf-custody
  2. Concentric grooves in brushed metal radiating from a bright centre, toned navy
    Macro 24-minute read

    Gold, the dollar, and bitcoin

    The monetary order is fragmenting, and capital is looking for a hedge. Gold and bitcoin are usually framed as rival answers to the same question. They are better understood as instruments built for different problems: gold the defensive holding, bitcoin the asymmetric bet.

    BitcoinGoldDe-dollarizationReserves
  3. Raking light across the layered edges of archival paper
    Regulation 14-minute read

    The CBB Cat-2 framework: a comparative analysis

    This article situates the Central Bank of Bahrain's Crypto-Asset Module (Volume 6) against comparable institutional crypto-custody regimes in the GCC and adjacent jurisdictions: ADGM FSRA, DFSA, VARA, and the federal Capital Markets Authority (formerly SCA).

    BahrainComparative analysis