Goldman Sachs is trading derivatives linked to the bitcoin’s price as it revives the bitcoin derivatives trading desk launched in 2018
The US investment bank executed in early May two types of derivative products linked to the price of bitcoin for its clients – a non-deliverable forwards (NFL), a derivative product pegged to futures contracts on bitcoin’s price that will pay out in cash, and another derivative linked to the bitcoin price.
Goldman has re-opened the desk it launched in 2018 in response to growing demand form institutional investors. The desk protects itself from the cryptocurrency’s volatility by buying and selling bitcoin futures in block trades on CME Group, using Cumberland DRW as its trading partner. Goldman, which still isn’t active in the bitcoin spot market, introduced the instruments to clients last month without an announcement.
The bank also said it is close to offering private wealth clients’ additional vehicles to bet on crypto prices. NDFs entail contracts between two parties that will settle the difference between the spot price and the contracted price at a certain date in the future. The product essentially gives Goldman clients the ability to speculate on bitcoin’s future price.
Valour rolls out trackers on Cardano, Polkadot
Valour Structured Products, a subsidiary of Canada’s DeFi Technologies has launched a Cardano (ADA) exchange-traded product (ETP), VALOUR CARDANO SEK - CH1114178796, on the Nordic Growth Market (NGM) stock exchange.
The ETP provider has also announced the upcoming launch of a Polkadot ETP, Valour Polkadot SEK - CH1114178770, on the NGM exchange later this month. Cardano and Polkadot are among the top 10 cryptocurrencies in the world by capitalisation, currently at US$65 billion and US$37 billion, respectively.
Cardano is an open-source, proof-of-stake blockchain platform which facilitates decentralised applications and peer-to-peer transactions via its native token, ADA. Polkadot is a next generation blockchain protocol that enables interoperability and scalability for multiple blockchains.
The products are fully backed at all times as the firm will purchase the equivalent amount of the underlying digital assets.
‘For investors, it is sometimes hard to get access to these opportunities because of regulatory constraints for difficulty in navigating the crypto landscape," said Wouter Witvoet, CEO of DeFi Technologies. "Valour, part of DeFi, removes such constraints by providing easy access to crypto assets through your regular brokerage accounts..."
Diana Biggs (pictured right), CEO of Valour, said there is growing investor demand for further digital asset products following the launch of the Valour Bitcoin and Ethereum Zero ETPs. Valour entered the exchange traded products (ETP) market in December 2020 with the launch of the Bitcoin Zero ETP on the Nordic Growth Market (NGM).
Saxo kicks-off crypto FX trading
Saxo Bank, the online trading and investment specialist, is launching a new cryptocurrency offering targeted at clients seeking to trade bitcoin, ethereum and litecoin against EUR, USD, and JPY from a single margin account without the need to maintain a crypto wallet.
Professional investors in selected markets will be able to trade Crypto FX pairs during the usual FX trading hours from Sunday evening to Friday evening with the ability to open both long and short positions in the three major cryptocurrencies via FX derivative instruments that track the price of the underlying cryptocurrencies.
Due to the volatile nature of the instruments, retail clients can trade with 2:1 leverage and professional clients with 3:1 leverage. The new Crypto FX offering complements Saxo Bank’s existing product suite of 182 FX pairs through its SaxoTraderGO and SaxoTraderPRO platforms.
The Danish bank already offers clients access to 40 different cryptocurrency trackers and ETNs, which so far this year have seen trading volumes exceeding the turnover for the entire year of 2020 – a year in which volumes surged by 130%.
iSTOX rebrands to ADDX, launches new product lines
Singapore-based digital securities exchange iSTOX is rebranding itself as ADDX as it enters a phase of growth - the private capital platform is seeking to double the 10 issuance deals completed in 2020.
The firm has also announced new product lines, including private equity (such as pre-IPO unicorns), structured products, products that provide exposure to cryptocurrencies, as well as commercial paper.
The new investment products will be offered alongside the products rolled out in 2020 such as hedge funds, private REITs and wholesale bonds. In addition to the new brand name, the ADDX platform has also launched the ADDX mobile app for investors to be able to access the platform on the go.
‘With ADDX, we are supercharging our growth towards the same mission of democratising the capital markets,’ said Oi Yee Choo, Chief Commercial Officer of ADDX. ‘The demand for fairer and more equal investing opportunities for accredited investors has never been greater, and we have built the infrastructure to make those opportunities available for the first time.’
Founded in 2017, ADDX is fully regulated by the MAS as a platform for the issuance, custody and secondary trading of digital securities, also known as security tokens.
DBS Private Bank launches trust solution for cryptocurrencies
DBS Private Bank has introduced a trust solution for the asset class via DBS Trustee – the bank’s wholly-owned, licensed trust company – to enable its private banking clients to invest, custodise and manage their digital assets in a safe, secure, and structured manner.
The move is Asia’s first bank-backed trust solution for cryptocurrencies, and builds on the DBS Digital Exchange (DDEX). Launched in December 2020, the DDEX provides access to institutional and accredited investors to a fully integrated tokenisation, trading and custody ecosystem for digital assets.
The bank’s new trust offering applies only to cryptocurrencies hosted on DDEX - bitcoin, ether, bitcoin cash and XRP. Clients will also be able to work with DBS Private Bank to integrate these assets into their wealth succession plans.
The offering builds on DDEX’s existing proposition for private banking clients, which provides security and transparency for crypto-assets with institutional-grade safekeeping and custodial services, and due diligence on the chain source.
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