Standard Chartered Enables Direct Bitcoin and Ethereum Trading for Wealthy UAE Clients

Standard Chartered announced on Wednesday that it is enabling direct trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum for its affluent clients in the United Arab Emirates. This new service allows eligible clients to buy and sell the cryptocurrencies directly from their bank accounts, eliminating the need for separate digital wallets or third-party trading platforms.

Broader Context

Source materials place the factual news in this context: Standard Chartered is a British lender.

Service Integration and Security

The service is available to clients classified as Professional Investors and operates under licensing approval from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). Standard Chartered will handle the custody and settlement of these digital assets through a closed-loop model. The bank states this approach reduces clients’ exposure to third-party wallet risks.

Samir Subberwal, the bank’s global head of wealth solutions, retail products, data and analytics, highlighted the significance of this integration, stating, “This launch represents a significant milestone for Standard Chartered as we bring digital assets into our core wealth offering.” He added, “Clients now want more than access, and are looking for the security that comes with buying through a regulated institution.”

Expanding Crypto Offerings

This move integrates digital assets into Standard Chartered’s core wealth management offering. Previously, the bank provided indirect exposure to cryptocurrencies through instruments like ETFs, structured products, and over-the-counter derivatives. Standard Chartered also brought its institutional crypto desk to the UAE last month through its unit in the Dubai International Financial Centre, which is overseen by the Dubai Financial Services Authority.

Standard Chartered’s crypto custody service went live in the UAE in September 2024. The bank also operates a crypto custody service in the EU via a Luxembourg entity, which became operational a few months after the UAE launch.

Context and Background

Standard Chartered is a global systemically important bank, and the UAE is identified as one of its four global wealth hubs. The bank’s venture arm, SC Ventures, backs Zodia Markets, a digital asset infrastructure provider.

While the bank has historically been involved in the digital asset space, including through analyst commentary, this direct trading service for wealth clients in the UAE is described as a global first for Standard Chartered and the first crypto trading offering from an international bank in the UAE. The bank has not provided specific details on the exact date of the announcement on Wednesday, nor the precise timeframe for the EU custody service launch or the UAE institutional desk launch.