Standard Chartered, the British multinational banking and financial services group, has expanded its presence in the UAE by launching institutional spot trading for Bitcoin and Ether.

 

While this is not the first time institutional BTC and ETH spot trading has been launched in the UAE, Standard Chartered’s launch is unique, as it is the first Global Systemically Important Bank (G-SIB) to offer institutional Bitcoin and Ether deliverable spot trading in the region and is currently the only global bank offering such capabilities in the Emirates.

 

By launching these institutional grade spot trading services, Standard Chartered enables eligible institutional clients to access deliverable Bitcoin and Ether spot trading through its electronic trading channels.

 

“The UAE has developed a clear digital assets regulatory framework that supports institutional participation and innovation,” Rola Abu Manneh, Chief Executive Officer, UAE, Middle East and Pakistan at Standard Chartered, said.

 

“Extending our Bitcoin and Ether spot trading capability to institutional clients is a significant step in broadening our regulated digital asset proposition in the market. By combining execution with secure custody, governance and the connectivity of a global bank, we are providing clients with a more integrated way to participate in digital asset markets.”

 

The launch of Standard Chartered’s institutional spot trading service came just a few days after the bank became the first authorized bank distributor of the HKD-backed stablecoin developed by Anchorpoint Financial Limited.

 

Standard Chartered has also been involved in several pro crypto and tokenization friendly moves, launches and partnerships. Notable among these was its acquisition of Zodia Custody in May, a move designed to support institutional clients.

 

Zodia Custody, a company that provides institutional custody for cryptocurrencies and digital assets, has secured a payment license from Luxembourg’s Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF), the country’s primary financial regulator.

 

 

With this payment license secured, Zodia Custody is set to expand beyond crypto custody, its main offering, and is now moving into both the custody and seamless transfer of electronic money tokens and stablecoins within the European Union.

 

“Institutional adoption of crypto assets demands infrastructure that meets the highest standards of regulatory adherence and operational efficiency,” said Ami Nagata, Managing Director, Luxembourg at Zodia Custody Europe.

 

“Securing a Payment Institution license alongside our MiCA CASP authorization is a critical step in bridging our capabilities across crypto asset safekeeping. With both licenses in place, our clients have the certainty they need to manage their electronic money token and crypto asset strategies across Europe, with full confidence that their assets are safeguarded within a bank-grade environment.”

 

Alongside the payment license and the MiCA license it secured in December last year, Zodia Custody is now well-positioned to serve as a core infrastructure provider for institutional digital finance. Securing these licenses removes structural barriers and counterparty risks commonly associated with crypto asset service providers.

 

The securing of the Luxembourg payment license comes shortly after Standard Chartered made a non-binding offer to acquire Zodia Custody. Although the acquisition cost was not publicly disclosed, the offer has already been accepted by Zodia Custody shareholders.

 

Zodia Custody currently serves a number of institutional clients, including 21Shares, Re7 Capital, Bitwise, and BitMEX. In April of this year, Zodia Custody partnered with BitMEX to integrate the Interchange platform into BitMEX's infrastructure to enable off-exchange trading, a move that enhances the safety of clients' assets on the BitMEX platform, especially in the event of a security breach.