Standard Chartered Launches Spot Trading for Bitcoin, Ether in UK

Standard Chartered, a prominent multinational bank, has introduced a new trading service tailored for institutions and corporations, enabling them to engage in transactions involving major cryptocurrencies. This initiative, announced on Tuesday, allows for spot trading of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) through the bank's UK branch. The service is designed to be fully integrated with the bank's existing platforms, providing institutional clients with a familiar foreign exchange interface to access and trade crypto assets.

The bank's new offering also includes the option for investors to choose their preferred custodian or select from multiple providers for storing their crypto assets. This flexibility extends to Standard Chartered’s proprietary custody solutions, which were previously launched in the United Arab Emirates last September. The bank's group chief executive, Bill Winters, emphasized the significance of digital assets in the evolution of financial services, stating that they are integral to enabling new pathways for innovation, greater inclusion, and growth across the industry.

Following the launch of spot trading, Standard Chartered plans to expand its crypto offerings soon with crypto non-deliverable forwards (NDFs), which are two-party derivatives contracts. This move underscores the bank's commitment to providing a comprehensive suite of crypto services to its institutional clients, aligning with the growing demand for digital asset solutions in the financial sector.