Interdealer broker Icap has launched a Digital Asset Markets venture, which will initially operate in the cryptoasset derivatives space
The business has been launched in London, with regional desks in Asia and the United States to follow, offering clients global coverage. Initially, ICAP Digital Asset Markets will provide clients with OTC liquidity in the CME Bitcoin future, with plans to provide OTC liquidity in a bitcoin non-deliverable forward.
Frits Vogels, CEO TP Icap Emea, says: “We have been closely monitoring the development of this emergent asset class and recognise the transformational effect that the underlying technology could have on our industry.
“While this marks our first step into the asset class, we believe that cryptoassets are only a subset of a wider universe of digital assets that could be created through the use of this technology, and that the tokenisation of value could have application across multiple traditional asset classes.”
He says the group is exploring how its global network of trading venues and data services can provide institutional services to clients looking to invest in a wider range of digital assets.