Standard Chartered Introduces Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) Spot Trading for UAE based Institutions

Standard Chartered (LON: STAN) has expanded its digital-asset services in the United Arab Emirates, introducing institutional spot trading in Bitcoin and Ethereum through its Dubai International Financial Centre unit.

The bank said the offering makes it the first global systemically important bank to provide this type of service in the UAE and the only global lender currently offering institutional digital-asset spot trading in the region.

The product is available to eligible institutional clients through Standard Chartered DIFC, which is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority. Clients can buy and sell Bitcoin and Ether for delivery, rather than gaining exposure through derivatives.

Trading is routed through the bank’s existing electronic channels and is designed to sit inside the same platforms institutions already use for foreign-exchange activity.

That integration is intended to reduce operational friction by letting clients access crypto markets through familiar interfaces instead of opening a separate venue.

Settlement is flexible. Clients can complete trades with a custodian of their choosing, including Standard Chartered’s own digital-asset custody service, which the bank launched in the UAE in September 2024.