Standard Chartered Pioneers Digital Asset Prime Brokerage

Standard Chartered has made history by executing its first digital asset prime brokerage trades with LMAX Group, marking a significant milestone in the bank's push into institutional digital asset services.

The pilot covered spot Bitcoin and Ether trades against the US dollar with T+1 settlement through Standard Chartered's UK branch. The trades were executed on LMAX Digital, with Standard Chartered Prime Brokerage acting as the credit intermediary between counterparties. Settlement was completed through the bank's digital asset custody platform in Dubai.

This move is part of a broader trend among larger financial groups seeking to bring parts of the crypto market into established banking, risk, and compliance structures. Prime brokerage is a long-established feature of equities and foreign exchange markets, but digital assets have developed largely without the same balance-sheet support and credit intermediation provided by banks.

Alison Higgins, Head of Prime Services at Standard Chartered, said this pilot is part of a broader strategy to build a comprehensive institutional-grade digital asset platform. She noted that the bank's goal is to provide its Prime Brokerage clients with new opportunities backed by robust risk management and balance sheet strength.