Standard Chartered Makes History as First GSIB to Launch Deliverable Spot Crypto Trading
Wall Street's old guard just got a crypto wake-up call.
Standard Chartered—the $820 billion banking behemoth—just bulldozed through regulatory gray areas to offer clients direct Bitcoin and Ethereum spot trading. No futures, no ETFs, just cold hard crypto hitting your institutional wallet.
The GSIB stamp changes everything
As the first Globally Systemically Important Bank to cross this Rubicon, StanChart didn't just dip toes—it cannonballed into the deep end. Suddenly every compliance officer at JPMorgan just got a 3AM stress sweat.
Why this matters for TradFi
This isn't some crypto-native exchange playing fast and loose. We're talking about a 160-year-old institution with 85,000 employees across 59 markets. When they flip the 'on' switch for crypto settlement, even the most skeptical fund managers have to pay attention.
The fine print they're not advertising
Don't expect Robinhood-style meme coin access. This is strictly Bitcoin and Ethereum for now—the regulatory equivalent of only allowing clients to snort pharmaceutical-grade cocaine.
One giant leap for crypto-kind... and one small step toward banks finally admitting blockchain isn't just for drug dealers and degenerates.
In line with its commitment to offer clients safe, trusted and efficient digital assets solutions and following the successful launch of its digital assets custody service, Standard Chartered has launched a fully integrated digital assets trading service for institutional clients. The offering includes spot trading for Bitcoin (XBT/USD) and Ether (XET/USD) through its UK branch and will soon be introducing non-deliverable forwards (NDFs) trading.
This makes Standard Chartered the first global systemically important bank to offer deliverable spot Cryptoasset trading for institutional clients including corporates, investors and asset managers.
The trading offering is fully integrated with Standard Chartered’s existing platforms, allowing institutional clients to access and trade cryptoassets through familiar FX interfaces. Clients can settle to their choice of custodian, including Standard Chartered’s secure digital assets custody solutions.
As an FCA-registered cryptoasset service provider, clients benefit from the assurance of dealing with a regulated global bank, supported by robust balance sheet capabilities, institutional-grade risk controls, and world-class trading platform.
Commenting on the launch, said: “Digital assets are a foundational element of the evolution in financial services. They’re integral to enabling new pathways for innovation, greater inclusion and growth across the industry. As client demand accelerates further, we want to offer clients a route to transact, trade and manage digital asset risk safely and efficiently within regulatory requirements.”
“We are applying our global expertise, infrastructure and risk management frameworks that our clients trust to the digital assets space,” said , Markets, at Standard Chartered. “With growing interest in regulated digital assets solutions, we are well positioned to meet client needs while capturing the opportunities in this space.”
Operating within Standard Chartered’s regulated banking framework, this offering is uniquely positioned to remove many of the barriers institutional clients faces when entering the crypto space. The offering is the latest expansion in Standard Chartered’s growing suite of digital asset capabilities. Standard Chartered now offers digital assets custody and trading through its Corporate and Investment Bank, and through its ventures, Zodia Custody and Zodia Markets and digital asset tokenisation services, through another venture, Libeara.
Source: Standard Chartered
