Over 20 crypto heavyweights put heads together to plan institutional uptake; clearinghouse initiative set for July

Two dozen key players from the likes of Circle, Coinbase and Galaxy Digital came together for a major brainstorming effort on how to make crypto “part of the world’s financial architecture” in mid-January, Bloomberg reports.

Those present at the Singapore Sofitel resort meeting say the framework designed to get crypto accepted institutionally could pave the way for its eventual adoption. Most importantly, the roundtable is believed to have formed a venture called Liquidity Offset Network, “the first clearinghouse for crypto derivatives to increase trading volume and dramatically reduce trading costs,” Bloomberg said. The former head of foreign-exchange options trading for Asia at Standard Chartered, Simon Nursey, is helping finance the network and said it should be live with regulatory approval as early as July. Trading firm QCP is also leading the clearinghouse initiative. 

Veteran trader Hoe Lon Leng reportedly orchestrated the meeting amid the heat of the bear market, hoping to boost the space by moving away from crypto futures, traded on exchanges like CME, and more on over-the-counter contracts (like derivatives). The difference is crypto derivatives are not standardized and also "expose traders to the credit risk of their counterparts."

About Author

Isabel is The Block's London and European reporter. She previously reported for Reuters in Madrid and London, following on from her time as a freelance journalist for the Guardian and the New York Times. She has a Bachelors in War Studies from King’s College London and a Master of Philosophy from the University of Oxford. Conflict of Interest: Edward Woodford, the CEO of SeedCX, is Isabel's brother. She does not report on any issues related to Seed or advise other authors in any regard.