Standard Chartered to Launch Bitcoin, Ether Trading Desk
Standard Chartered has revealed plan to enter the spot crypto trading market as the bank readies its trading desk for the emerging asset class.
The new London-based crypto trading desk, which will be part of Standard Chartered’s FX trading unit, will trade bitcoin and ether, the world’s top two crypto assets by market capitalization, Bloomberg reported.
The crypto trading desk will mark a significant pivot toward digital assets for Standard Chartered, a bank with strong traditional finance background.
This move signals the bank’s recognition of the growing importance of cryptocurrencies on the global financial landscape, according to analysts.
Bitcoin has a market capitalization of $1.2 trillion, while ether’s market value stands at around $428 billion, according to Coinmarketcap. Standard Chartered’s spot crypto trading desk to trade bitcoin and ether won’t be the firm’s first foray into the multi-trillion dollar emerging asset class.
The firm backed the launch of Zodia Markets, a crypto exchange and a brokerage platform, in 2021.
Standard Chartered also has a stake in crypto custodian Zodia Custody. Institutional interest in spot crypto trading has jumped after the SEC’s approval of spot bitcoin ETFs in January. Some of the world’s largest hedge funds, including Izzy Englander’s Millennium Management and Paul Singer’s Elliott Management started buying spot bitcoin ETFs in the first quarter.
Banks weren’t far behind in the bitcoin ETF mania. Morgan Stanley owned roughly $270 million in bitcoin ETFs as of March 31, CoinDesk reported. Standard Chartered said that the firm is working closely with regulators to support demand from institutional clients to trade bitcoin and ether.
Nomura is another banking giant that has been betting big on crypto for years. The bank established crypto trading and asset management firm Laser Digital in September 2022. Nomura appointed its chief digital officer Jez Mohideen as the CEO of Laser Digital.
In November, Standard Chartered launched a blockchain unit called Libeara to assist institutions with the tokenization of real-world assets. This includes supporting the deployment of a tokenized government bond fund using the Singaporean dollar. Bitcoin’s price decreased by over 2% in the past 24 hours and was changing hands for $64,203. US Dollar Rises Ahead of S&P Global PMI
