Galaxy Digital Wins New York BitLicense

Galaxy Digital secured a BitLicense from New York on May 18 to offer regulated crypto services to institutions.

Galaxy Digital announced on May 18 that the New York State Department of Financial Services granted its subsidiary GalaxyOne Prime NY both a BitLicense and a Money Transmission License.

The approvals authorise Galaxy to offer regulated digital asset trading and custody services to institutions across New York State, including registered investment advisers, hedge funds, and family offices on a platform managing approximately $9 billion in client assets.

“New York is home to the deepest pool of institutional capital in the country, and digital assets are no longer sitting at the edge of those allocations,” said Mike Novogratz, Galaxy’s founder and CEO, in a statement.

Galaxy becomes only the second firm to receive a BitLicense in 2026, following bitcoin payments firm Strike, which secured NYDFS approval in March.

The framework, introduced in 2015, is one of the strictest crypto licensing regimes in the US, requiring capital minimums, ongoing compliance reviews, and cybersecurity oversight. Only around 40 companies have been approved since launch. New York now joins Galaxy’s regulatory network of more than 50 global licences.

As crypto.news reported, Galaxy research head Alex Thorn has been closely tracking institutional Bitcoin allocations throughout 2026. The New York BitLicense gives Galaxy’s trading and custody platform direct access to the institutions driving those flows, in a state that holds the largest concentration of hedge funds and investment advisers in the US.

Why New York matters for institutional crypto

BitLicense holders include Coinbase, Robinhood, Circle, and PayPal, making Galaxy’s approval a signal that NYDFS continues selectively admitting crypto firms. As crypto.news documented in its 2025 coverage of Galaxy’s Q2 results, the firm has been building out its data center and AI infrastructure alongside its digital asset platform.

The New York licence now opens one of the world’s largest institutional pools to a firm that generated record results in Global Markets last year and has expanded its data center operations significantly since.

Galaxy’s shares fell 2.36% to $28.91 in pre-market trading on Monday despite the approval, reflecting broader market weakness on the day.