BitGo Integrates Narval to Deliver Institutional DeFi Access from Qualified Custody

Integration launches with support for Aave, Maple Finance, and Spark

BitGo, the digital asset infrastructure company, today announced the integration of Narval's institutional DeFi gateway, enabling institutional clients to access decentralized finance directly from BitGo's qualified custody wallets. The integration allows institutions to supply, and manage positions on leading DeFi protocols, including Aave, Maple Finance, and Spark, while maintaining institutional-grade security and governance controls.

Why This Matters

Institutional appetite for onchain earnings and lending is growing fast. But connecting custody infrastructure to decentralized applications has remained an operational and security challenge for most firms. Institutions have had to choose between the protections of qualified custody or self-custody and the opportunities available in DeFi.

That tradeoff is over. BitGo's integration with Narval gives institutions a secure, policy-controlled path into DeFi directly from their existing BitGo qualified custody environment.

Narval's DeFi Gateway is purpose-built for institutional use. It connects DeFi applications to BitGo's custody and wallet infrastructure through three core security layers:

Transaction Integrity Verification.

Every transaction is decoded at the parameter level into human-readable form before it reaches a signer. There is zero blind signing. The whitelisting engine verifies each calldata field against an approved protocol list, blocking phishing attempts, spoofed frontends, and hidden parameter changes.

Institutional Wallet Connector.

Narval uses OAuth-based delegated authorization and trusted execution environments (TEEs) to create a secure bridge between DeFi applications and BitGo's custody API, keeping signing keys protected at every step.

dApp SDK.

The SDK enables DeFi applications to embed transaction interfaces directly within their platform, with real-time execution updates and live status tracking.

Together, these components give institutions a seamless way to interact with DeFi protocols while preserving the operational controls, auditability, and governance workflows they already rely on.

"Institutional DeFi is entering a new era of safety and scale," said Chen Fang, Chief Revenue Officer at BitGo. "Our integration with Narval empowers clients to connect to DeFi directly from BitGo custody, combining advanced whitelisting and transaction verification with BitGo's infrastructure."

What Institutions Can Do

With the Narval integration live, BitGo clients can:

• Participate in onchain lending and liquidity protocols directly from custody.

• Eliminate blind-signing risk with full transaction decoding and parameter-level verification before execution.

• Monitor transaction execution in real time while maintaining institutional reporting and governance requirements.

Supported Protocols at Launch

Aave is the leading decentralized lending and borrowing protocol. Through this integration, institutions can supply assets as collateral and manage positions with full visibility, all from their BitGo qualified custody.

"BitGo bringing Aave to qualified custody is a landmark moment for institutional DeFi," said Stani Kulechov, Founder of Aave. "For the first time, one of the world's largest custodians is giving its clients direct access to Aave's lending markets with the full security of BitGo custody behind every transaction. This is how institutional capital comes onchain at scale."

Maple Finance is an institutional credit marketplace offering structured, fixed-income DeFi products designed for treasury mandates and institutional capital deployment.

"Institutional allocators have wanted access to Maple's credit markets through infrastructure they already trust," said Sid Powell, Co-Founder and CEO of Maple Finance. "BitGo provides exactly that. Having a federally chartered, SOC 2 certified custodian as the entry point into Maple's lending pools removes one of the last barriers for institutional participation in onchain credit."

Spark is a DeFi savings and lending protocol offering competitive rewards on stablecoins and ETH, with borrowing available against ETH and liquid staking token collateral.

"Spark is built for stability and scale, and that's exactly what BitGo delivers on the custody side," said Sam MacPherson, CEO of Spark. "Institutions that want to earn rewards on stablecoins and beyond now have a clear, compliant path to do so. This integration connects two pieces of infrastructure that were always meant to work together."

How It Works

Getting started with DeFi through the Narval integration is straightforward. Here is the general flow for connecting a BitGo wallet and interacting with a supported protocol.

1. Step 1: Navigate to a Supported Protocol. Open the application for the protocol you want to use (e.g., Aave, Maple Finance, or Spark). From the protocol's interface, click "Connect Wallet."

2. Step 2: Select Institutional Wallets. In the wallet connection modal, select "Institutional Wallets" to proceed with BitGo. A screen will appear confirming that BitGo uses Narval to securely connect your wallet, highlighting three security features: end-to-end encrypted requests, decoded transaction previews before initiation, and DeFi whitelisting rules. Click "Continue" to proceed.

3. Step 3: Log In to BitGo and Authorize. You will be redirected to BitGo to log in with your existing credentials. After logging in, review the requested permissions & terms of use, and click "Authorize" to grant the protocol access through Narval's secure OAuth-based connection. Your BitGo credentials are never exposed to the protocol application directly.

4. Step 4: Select Your Wallet. Back on the protocol interface, a Narval modal will display your available BitGo wallets. Select the wallet you want to use and click "Confirm." Your connected dashboard will reload showing your wallet balance and available actions.

5. Step 5: Initiate a Transaction. When you initiate a transaction (such as a deposit), the Narval verification modal will display the full transaction details in human-readable form, including the transaction type, source account, amounts, and interacting contract. Every transaction is verified by Narval's Gatekeeper before it reaches BitGo. There is zero blind signing.

6. Step 6: Sign on BitGo. For self-custody wallets, navigate to BitGo, locate the pending transaction, and sign with your wallet password and 2FA code. For qualified custody wallets, the transaction enters BitGo's custody approval workflow, which may require one or more designated approvers based on your organization's policy.

7. Step 7: Confirm Completion. Once signed and broadcast, the protocol interface will confirm the transaction was successful. You can view the transaction hash and full details directly in the Narval modal before closing.

Protocol interface access:

• Aave: https://app.aave.com/

• Maple: https://app.maple.finance/earn

• Spark: https://app.spark.fi/

Some protocols require a two-step process (an approval step followed by the deposit itself), where each step requires its own Narval verification and BitGo signing. This is standard for ERC-20 token interactions and applies to both self-custody and qualified custody wallets.

Looking Ahead

"Our mission is to make DeFi participation secure and seamless for institutions," said Greg Jessner, CEO and Co-Founder of Narval. "By integrating with BitGo's qualified custody and self-custody wallets, we're ensuring that clients can access DeFi opportunities without compromising on compliance or security."

The integration between BitGo and Narval represents an important step toward connecting institutional custody infrastructure with decentralized financial markets. BitGo and Narval will continue expanding support for additional DeFi protocols and integrations as institutional participation in onchain finance accelerates.

BitGo clients can activate Narval-powered DeFi access through their account manager.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Narval?

Narval is an institutional DeFi gateway that provides secure, policy-controlled access to decentralized finance from custody platforms. Narval's infrastructure includes transaction integrity verification, OAuth-based wallet connectivity through trusted execution environments, and a dApp SDK that enables seamless interaction with DeFi protocols.

Which protocols are supported at launch?

At launch, the integration supports Aave, Maple Finance, and Spark. BitGo and Narval plan to expand support for additional DeFi protocols over time.

Does this work with both qualified custody and self-custody wallets?

Yes. The integration supports both BitGo qualified custody and self-custody wallets. The protocol interaction and Narval verification flow are the same for both wallet types. The difference is in how transactions are signed: self-custody wallets sign directly with a wallet password and 2FA, while qualified custody wallets go through BitGo's custody approval workflow, which may require multiple approvers based on your organization's policy.

What is blind signing, and how does Narval prevent it?

Blind signing occurs when a user signs a transaction without being able to read or verify its contents. This creates risk for phishing attacks and malicious parameter changes. Narval eliminates blind signing by decoding every transaction at the parameter level into human-readable form before it reaches a signer. The Gatekeeper engine verifies each transaction against an approved protocol list before it can proceed.

Do I need to set up a new wallet to use this integration?

No. You can connect your existing BitGo qualified custody or self-custody wallets directly through the Narval integration. There is no need to create new wallets or transfer assets.

Is there an additional cost for DeFi access through Narval?

BitGo clients can activate Narval-powered DeFi access through their customer success manager.

How do I get started?

Reach out to your BitGo account manager to activate Narval-powered DeFi access. Once activated, you can connect your wallet to supported protocols by following the steps outlined in the How It Works section above.