Brava Finance: Regulatory uncertainty greatest barrier to digital asset strategies

November 27, 2025

Regulatory uncertainty remains the greatest barrier to institutional investors and wealth managers building a digital asset allocation strategy, new global research from Brava Finance shows.

This is followed by concerns about custody and security, worries around volatility, and a lack of internal knowledge.  ESG or reputational concerns, a lack of trusteed platforms and an unclear value proposition were also cited as barriers.

When it comes to implementing a digital strategy, governance challenges and internal sign off is what causes the sleepless nights ahead of vendor reliability, a lack of operational process and technical complexity.

Brava Finance, whose platform helps users access stablecoin-based credit strategies through decentralized finance (DeFi), has launched  its Stablecoin SMA and first credit fund, which offers institutional-grade access via a regulated Cayman vehicle. The fund employs leading custody solutions such as Fireblocks and Northern Trust.

Its study in the US, UK, UAE, EU, Brazil, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and Hong Kong found that professional investors are rather less concerned about digital assets being seen as speculative or having a lack of peer benchmarking, than feeling exposed to client or trustee criticism and concerns about explaining losses or volatility. 

When asked what would increase their confidence in allocating to digital assets or stable coins, more than two thirds (68%) say institutional adoption, ahead of demonstrated outperformance (55%), and better custody/insurance and simpler onboarding (53% respectively).

Despite regulatory uncertainty being the greatest barrier, only 23% of institutional investors and wealth managers say that clearer regulation would encourage them to allocate more to digital assets. This perhaps reinforces the belief expressed elsewhere in the research that the regulatory environment is already improving.