U.K-Based Banking Giant Standard Chartered Is Setting Up A Spot Bitcoin, Ether Trading Desk

British multinational bank Standard Chartered is creating a Bitcoin and Ethereum trading desk in London, according to a recent report. If launched, Standard Chartered would become one of the first banks in the world to enter spot crypto trading.

Standard Chartered Ventures Into Spot Crypto Trading

According to a Bloomberg report citing two people familiar with the matter, Standard Chartered is close to launching a spot trading desk for buying and selling BTC and ETH following the approval of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs in the U.S. 

The new desk will be run from London, United Kingdom, and part of Standard Chartered’s Forex trading unit. The offering will expand the multinational bank’s suite of crypto asset services, including crypto custody and OTC trading.

“We have been working closely with our regulators to support demand from our institutional clients to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum, in line with our strategy to support clients across the wider digital asset ecosystem, from access and custody to tokenization and interoperability,” the bank posited in a statement.

StanChart holds stakes in institutional crypto custodian Zodia Custody and its exchange arm, Zodia Markets. Establishing its own spot crypto trading desk indicates a clear intention to enter the cryptocurrency world.

The banking behemoth has been bullish on crypto in recent months. In May, analysts from the bank said they envision Bitcoin and Ethereum setting new record highs after the SEC’s greenlighting of U.S.-listed spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The bank later forecasted that Solana and XRP ETFs were next in line for SEC approval.

Community Lauds Standard Chartered’s Crypto Move

Crypto community members celebrated Standard Chartered’s decision to launch its spot crypto trading desk. Binance CEO Richard Teng took to X to welcome the British bank into the crypto arena.

Welcome to crypto, Standard Chartered https://t.co/wtUtbu7Jno

— Richard Teng (@_RichardTeng) June 21, 2024

One member of the crypto community, who is going by the online moniker Crypto Shark, thinks the move is a “significant step” for Standard Chartered and a “major endorsement” of crypto’s increasing legitimacy. In his view, this may boost investor confidence and pave the way for wider adoption of BTC and ETH.

Another X user shared the same sentiment, stating that Standard Chartered jumping on the spot crypto trading bandwagon could spur more mainstream acceptance.