Global banking giant Standard Chartered is entering the crypto space with a new spot trading desk for Bitcoin and Ethereum, as revealed by a Bloomberg article. report. This development positions Standard Chartered as one of the first major global banks to directly engage in the trading of underlying crypto assets, an area that has seen cautious participation from major global banks, primarily due to contexts strict regulations.
Standard Chartered will offer Bitcoin and Ethereum
The newly created trading desk is integrated within the bank’s foreign exchange trading unit and is strategically positioned in London, a global financial hub, sources with knowledge of the situation reported. This operation is expected to begin imminently, making Standard Chartered one of the first major global banks to facilitate spot trading in real assets Bitcoin and Ether, moving away from the more commonly traded crypto derivatives.
The decision to launch a spot cryptocurrency trading desk stemmed from a meticulous period of planning and regulatory consultations. “We are working closely with our regulators to meet our institutional clients’ demand to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum, in line with our strategy to support clients across the digital asset ecosystem, access and from custody to tokenization and interoperability,” the bank said. through an official statement.
This initiative is not Standard Chartered’s first foray into the digital assets space. The bank has actively participated in the cryptocurrency sector through significant investments in related infrastructure, such as Zodia Custody and Zodia Markets, which provide services ranging from digital asset custody to sophisticated over-the-counter trading solutions. .
Further expanding its blockchain efforts, Standard Chartered has launched Libeara, a dedicated blockchain unit aimed at helping institutions tokenize traditional assets. This includes in particular an innovative project to create a tokenized government bond fund denominated in Singapore dollars, demonstrating the bank’s commitment to integrating blockchain technology with conventional financial instruments.
Beyond the operational details of the trading desk, the bank’s commitment to the crypto market is also reflected in its market analysis and forecasts. Recently, analysts at Standard Chartered, including Geoffrey Kendrick, who heads emerging markets research, published a striking study: optimistic prediction for Bitcoin’s price trajectory, especially in the context of the upcoming US presidential elections.
“As the US elections approach, I expect $100,000 to be reached, then $150,000 by the end of the year in the case of a vote. Asset victory,” Kendrick said, suggesting that political outcomes could significantly influence market dynamics.
Longer term, Kendrick envisions Bitcoin reaching $200,000 by the end of 2025, driven by robust and continued investment flows into the recently launched Bitcoin spot ETFs, which he believes will attract sustained investment from retirement type.
At press time, BTC was trading at $63,657.
Featured image of X @BTC_Archive, chart from TradingView.com
