24 Dec 2018 Anthony Lehrman
Wall Street and the Bitcoin Dreams
Following the year-long bull market in the crypto industry, Wall Street is currently in Limbo. But according to Bloomberg believers are still optimistic.
Squeamish from the beginning about pursuing the crypto market, established firms slowed their efforts to benefit from the “Bitcoin-mania” throughout the year. While some continue to develop trading infrastructures, the majority flinched with the collapse of virtual coins.
While Goldman Sachs Group Inc aimed at positioning itself as a world leader in digital assets, progress has been hardly noticeable. According to those familiar with the company’s crypto business, it was somewhat impractical to expect last year’s bull market to translate to a Wall Street cryptocurrency offering.
The CEO of SolidX Partners, Daniel Gallancy said the market’s expectations towards Goldman Sachs and its peers were unrealistic. SolidX is a New York-based company that’s aiming to launch an ETF on bitcoin in the U.S.
Goldman Sachs was among the first Wall Street companies to clear Bitcoin futures and remains a focal point for the mass adoption of cryptocurrencies. Last year the firm was preparing a trading desk and even announced its plans to the New York Times.
After considering a custodian for the crypto funds, the company invested in BitGo Holding inc – a custodian that also offers bitcoin derivatives known as non-deliverable forwards. However, the bank’s Non-Deliverable Forward (NDF) product hasn’t gained any traction given that it has just signed 20 clients and is yet to start crypto trading.
Since last September, Morgan Stanley has been prepared to deliver swaps for tracking bitcoin futures but yet hasn’t started trading. According to earlier reports, the contracts would be sold once the institutional client demand is proven.
The other big player - Citigroup Inc also didn’t trade any of the crypto products it designed within the regulatory framework. Reportedly, the digital asset receipts support trading by proxy with no direct ownership of the coins.
In London, Barclays Plc stated that their clients are interested in trading cryptocurrencies, and even appointed former oil traders, Matthieu Jobbe and Chris Tyler to explore the crypto business. However now, the bank’s spokesman says that Barclays has no plans to start a crypto trading desk.
Nevertheless, according to experts, the bear market will allow established institutions to lay proper crypto trading foundations without rushing and without taking huge risks.
Believers are saying that even after losing over $700 billion of its market cap, Wall Street players will enter the crypto market in 2019.
