GAIN Capital launches bitcoin trading in Australia and Singapore

BitcoinAs cryptocurrencies keep surging, retail and institutional foreign exchange brokers are adapting to the new market by providing users with new offerings. This is also the case of GAIN Capital Holdings, Inc., one of the leading global FX and CFD brokers. GAIN announced the launch of Bitcoin trading in Australia and Singapore on the Company’s City Index branded service, which is regulated by ASIC and MAS, respectively.

 

After repeated requests from costumers, GAIN Capital has decided to join the bitcoin craze in a limited roll out. First, the company launched bitcoin trading in the U.K. and Europe  in Q4 2017 across the Company’s City Index and FOREX.com brands. GAIN’s Bitcoin futures offering in the U.S. is available through its Futures Online and Daniels Trading brands. The broker also plans to expand its cryptocurrency offering to include Ethereum and other digital currencies in early 2018.

 

Enabling its users to trade the value of the cryptocurrency through a highly-regulated broker without the need to set up a digital wallet to take delivery of and store tokens, GAIN offers Bitcoin trading either as an over-the-counter (OTC) derivative or as a future.

 

The offering, bitcoin trading as an OTC derivative or as a future, allows traders to speculate on Bitcoin price movements without owning the underlying asset. Where permitted by regulation, customers may trade Bitcoin on margin.

 

Glenn Stevens, Chief Executive Officer of GAIN Capital
Glenn Stevens, Chief Executive Officer of GAIN Capital

Glenn Stevens, Chief Executive Officer of GAIN Capital, said: “For those who want exposure to Bitcoin, trading the cryptocurrency as a derivative with a regulated brokerage firm offers several key advantages over a
Bitcoin exchange. We view these benefits as: competitive fees and margin rates, the ability to go long or short, enhanced price discovery via aggregated liquidity from multiple Bitcoin market makers and exchanges, and fast trade execution.”

 

With the launch of bitcoin trading in Australia and Singapore, following the U.K. and Europe last month, GAIN is left with other markets in Asia and the United States in order to complete the global roll out of Bitcoin trading in the coming months.

 

Many other brokers have already joined the cryptocurrency club in 2017. Swissquote launched its crypto offering in December 2017while CME Group and Cboe announced their bitcoin listings in early December. Earlier in 2017, the first FX brokers to offer some form of bitcoin trading were Admiral Markets, XTB and Alpari, Plus500, IG, eToro, AvaTrade, ayondo, and Markets.com.

 

In the meantime, the CFTC announced that it will be standardizing the process of self-certification of crypto-currency derivatives.