Key takeaways:
- Targeting institutional investors, the German securities market Deutsche Börse has formally introduced its own cryptocurrency trading platform.
- A multilateral trading facility, or trading system, that facilitates the exchange of financial instruments between several parties will come after RfQ trading.
Targeting institutional investors, the German securities market Deutsche Börse has formally introduced its own cryptocurrency trading platform.
On March 5, Deutsche Börse announced the opening of Deutsche Börse Digital Exchange (DBDX), its exclusive cryptocurrency spot platform for institutional clients.
The DBDX, which was introduced in partnership with custody provider Crypto Finance, provides a safe, regulated environment for the exchange, settlement, and storage of digital assets.
The DBDX will first trade on a request-for-quote (RfQ) basis, which is how businesses get bids from certain suppliers and contractors, according to Deutsche Börse.
A multilateral trading facility, or trading system, that facilitates the exchange of financial instruments between several parties will come after RfQ trading.
According to the release, DBDX intends to offer its cryptocurrency trading services to customers in Germany and other European markets. The statement also stated:
“Our new solution is a game changer for digital ecosystems. We aim to provide trusted market operations for crypto assets, ensuring transparency, security, and regulatory compliance for institutional clients in Europe,” Deutsche Börse’s head of digital assets, Carlo Kölzer, noted.
The new platform, he said, is the first step towards achieving Deutsche Börse’s goal of being a leader in the digitalization of asset classes, as outlined in the Horizon 2026 agenda.
In late 2023, Deutsche Börse first declared its plan to introduce a digital asset platform. The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) granted Crypto Finance four licenses in February, allowing the company to offer regulated custody, trading, and settlement services for digital assets in Germany. The regulatory milestone evolved into an additional requirement for the DBDX launch.
Given that Deutsche Börse has been actively involved in the cryptocurrency market in recent years, the company’s recent decision to allow cryptocurrency trading further demonstrates its supportive attitude towards cryptocurrencies.
Numerous investment products relating to cryptocurrencies have been launched on Xetra, the electronic trading platform of Deutsche Börse. These products include exchange-traded Bitcoin and Ether products from prominent European issuers such as 21Shares.
The benefits of blockchain technology for activities like securities financing are being actively investigated by the securities market as well.
