Boston-headquartered investment firm Fidelity is planning to launch cryptocurrency trading services for institutional clients, according to a Bloomberg report.
Though no timeline is specified, the anonymous source of the publication thinks that the buying and selling of digital currencies will start within the next few weeks.
Growing Market Demand
This news surfaced days after Fidelity published a survey report which concluded that 22 percent of the institutional investors have some form of crypto investments while 47 percent of the participants are willing to add digital assets in their portfolio.
The Trading Platform will operate under Fidelity Digital Asset Services (FADS), a subsidiary created by the company last October. Earlier this year, the investment introduced a crypto custodian service for the same set of customers - hedge funds, family offices, trading firms, and any other high-volume clients.
“We currently have a select set of clients we’re supporting on our platform,” Arlene Roberts, a spokesperson from Fidelity, confirmed Bloomberg. “We will continue to roll out our services over the coming weeks and months based on our clients’ needs, jurisdictions, and other factors. Currently, our service offering is focused on Bitcoin .”
The last time bitcoin broke $6,000...
- Square wasn't selling Bitcoin. - Fidelity wasn't storing Bitcoin. - TD Ameritrade wasn't trading Bitcoin. - Lightning Network wasn't holding 1,000 Bitcoin. — The Rhythm Trader (@Rhythmtrader) May 3, 2019
The crypto market has endured a few major controversial setbacks this year - first with QuadrigaCX, which raised the concern for proper crypto custody, and now the allegations against Bitfinex and Tether. The latter has raised concerns over the legitimacy of the major crypto exchanges which might drive away institutional clients from the market.
The influx of major traditional investment firms towards crypto, however, will add more trust to the market. Fidelity’s competitors including E*Trade and TD Ameritrade are also reportedly considering to jump into the digital asset market.
