Galaxy Digital has agreed to buy GK8, the digital asset self-custody technology company owned by bankrupt crypto lender Celsius. Celsius acquired GK8 from Israel for $115 million in November last year, and Celsius filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July. In August, Galaxy terminated a $1.2 billion deal to buy custodian BitGo, a deal originally announced in May 2021.

“The acquisition of GK8 is a crucial pillar in our effort to create a truly full-service financial platform for digital assets, ensuring that our clients will have the option to store their digital assets on or separate from Galaxy without compromising versatility and functionality.” said Mike Novogratz, Galaxy Founder and CEO.

“Adding GK8 to our core offering at this crucial time for our industry also highlights our continued willingness to seize strategic opportunities to grow Galaxy sustainably.”

GK8 provides secure digital asset custody solutions to financial institutions, including banks, trust companies, stockbrokers, and retail platforms. It will be one of the custody options provided by the GalaxyOne offering.

“With the backing of Galaxy, we aim to introduce exciting new offerings to the industry that showcase a combination of Galaxy’s best-in-class services and GK8’s unrivaled cryptography, security and R&D skills,” said the CEO. from GK8, Lior Lamesh.

The acquisition will add 40 new employees. In early November, Bloomberg reported that the Galaxy was considering laying off up to 20% of its 375 employees. An NFT-related company, Candy Digital, also announced staff cuts this week.