SC Ventures, a Subsidiary of StanChart, Funds European Retail Crypto Derivatives Platform One Trading – Ledger Insights

SC Ventures, the investment arm of Standard Chartered, has committed funds to One Trading, which is recognized as the crypto asset marketplace within the European Union. In the closing days of July, One Trading successfully secured an Organised Trading Facility (OTF) license from the Netherlands’ Dutch Financial Markets Authority (AFM). Consequently, it is positioned as the sole regulated platform for crypto derivatives exchange in Europe under the MiFID II directive.

The financing round drew additional contributions from prior investor MiddleGame Ventures as well as newcomers Valar and SpeedInvest. Although financial details remain undisclosed, the injection of capital will be channelled towards the establishment of its crypto perpetual futures marketplace.

MiCA regulations are well-established with respect to spot crypto assets, but One Trading’s attention is on derivatives – a segment governed by MiFID II. The derivatives soon to be offered are innovative, comprising cash-settled perpetual futures for leading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether.

One Trading portrays its offerings as a contemporary and more effective alternative to the conventional products served by the CME or Eurex. It heralds these products for being “simpler, more accurate, and substantially more capital-efficient than the traditional cleared derivatives such as dated futures.”

Alex Manson, the Chief Executive Officer of SC Ventures, stated, “Financial innovation should not be introduced at the expense of consumer safety, hence the reception of the OTF License by One Trading is commendable.” He extends his congratulations to their team for pioneering the MiFID II-compliant trading platform for crypto perpetual futures across the EU.

The investment portfolio of Standard Chartered and SC Ventures in the digital asset landscape is expansive, including their nurtured entities such as Zodia Custody, Zodia Markets, and the tokenization service Libeara. Recently, Zodia Custody has gained numerous new clients, in addition to a fresh investment from National Australia Bank, supplementing the founders StanChart and Northern Trust, along with the latest supporter, SBI Holdings.