In what could instantly raise the amount of Forex brokers offering trading in digital currency, financial technology provider, Leverate, has announced that they will begin to offer feeds for both bitcoin and litecoin. A provider of end to end brokerage tools including trading platforms, Risk Management software, and securities price feeds, Leverate is one of the larger technology providers for the retail forex industry. Clients using their products include Markets.com, Axiory, Trader24, CM Trading, Pepperstone, and IronFX.
According to the firm’s public statement (see below), Leverate will be offering broker users of its Sirix suite of products support for both bitcoin and litecoin trading. On its launch, feeds will be available to create CFDs (more on CFDs) for unhedged synthetic trading of bitcoins. However, they added that they also plan on adding straight through processing (STP) features. With STP, brokers will have the ability to hedge trades simultaneously in market. The advantages of STP is that it provides brokers a riskless environment for offering bitcoins as they profit from markups between market prices and the price being offered to their clients.
In terms of industry impact, STP ability and instant hedging has been viewed as a stumbling block for many firms to be able to launch bitcoin trading, as compliance rules often require initiatives on how risk can be handled. In terms of leverage and when STP will be launched, DC Magnates reached out to Leverate, with the company yet to answer at the time of posting. Overall, this brings the number of forex technology providers launching bitcoin feeds to at least three, with Gold-I and Timur Latypoff (TLTL), announcing products earlier this year. For litecoin, it also immediately raises the amount of firms that may being offering trading in the digital currency after Plus500 became the first last week.
Leverate Answers Client Demand to Support Bitcoin December 10, 2013 – Leverate announces that Sirix now supports Bitcoin and Litecoin trading. The digital currency was to the long list of instruments that the Forex & CFD retail front end already supports. Bitcoin was added due its potential as a trading vehicle, as well as its growing popularity with traders. Bitcoin pricing data rates will come from Mt Gox and will be available via LXFeed, Leverate's data pricing feed. “Leverate believes that decentralized currencies such as Bitcoin are the future of the market. We plan to start with Bitcoin/Dollar (BTNUSD), and we will keep on adding new digital currency alternatives as demand increases,” said Itay Damti, Leverate’s VP of Products. “While Leverate is initially offering Bitcoin using a CFD virtual trading model, we will eventually add STP Bitcoin opportunities.” Leverate has thoroughly researched the best policies for brokers who wish to add Bitcoin to their list of instruments, and provides assistance in selecting the most lucrative trading terms and leverage because, as Itay Damti cautions, “offering Bitcoin can be challenging for a broker without previous experience in digital currencies.” The main risk is possible overexposure caused by price fluctuations, with Bitcoin having eight times more volatility than Gold, and seven times more volatility than Silver. Bitcoin is offered through LXFeed, an integral component of LXSuite, Leverate’s turn-key complete package of private label brokerage solutions. Brokers can customize instruments offered through LXFeed to meet the demands of their specific traders. Leverate also offers LXFeed as a standalone product.
