Number-one ranked cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced it had launched its over-the-counter (OTC) trading desks for larger transactions, according to a Jan. 23 blog post. The new tool, simply known as Binance OTC, offers services geared to users performing trades worth at least 20 BTC ($71,000). “Our OTC desk allows Binance users to trade larger amounts of many cryptocurrencies listed on the exchange, with transactions being settled via their Binance accounts,” officials explained in the post. The move makes Binance the latest major cryptocurrency exchange to launch OTC services, following hot on the heels of United States exchange Bittrex last …

United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex will launch an over-the-counter (OTC) trading desk on Monday, according to statement shared with Cointelegraph on Jan. 14. The latest major exchange to enter the OTC market, Bittrex will offer investors the same raft of around 200 crypto assets currently available on its standard platform. OTC trading has become an increasingly popular option for institutional investors looking to perform large-volume trades. Fellow U.S. exchange Bitfinex opened its own platform in 2016, while the country’s largest player Coinbase is currently in the process of rolling out its product. Financial technology company Circle, meanwhile, revealed last week …

With the increasing trend for major financial institutions to invest in Bitcoin, United States crypto exchange and wallet provider Coinbase announced the launch of over-the-counter (OTC) trading for institutional customers on Nov. 27. OTC trading allows investors to carry out direct trades with each other. It means that the company’s institutional users won’t be trading through a crypto exchange or an intermediary. Coinbase’s latest trading initiative began on June 6, when President and COO Asiff Hirji explained that obtaining a regulatory license would enable the company to set off on a “path to offer future services that include crypto securities …

Sberbank and Interros Group have carried out an over-the-counter OTC foreign exchange repurchase agreement (repo) transaction employing smart contracts on a blockchain, Reuters Russia reports Nov. 30. The Interros Group is a Moscow-based private equity firm founded by Russian oligarch Vladimir Potanin in 1990, with stakes in Norilsk Nickel, pharmaceutical company Petrovax Pharm, and ski resort development firm Rosa Khutor. Head of global markets department and vice president at Sberbank, Andrei Shemetov, informed Reuters that the transaction is real, legally binding, and has been “concluded in electronic format using a smart contract and digital signatures through the IT platform of …

This week, the government of China has cracked down on crypto-related WeChat accounts, blockchain events and digital asset exchanges, solidifying its negative stance on cryptocurrency trading and the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) market. WeChat ban and PBoC’s warning against ICOs On Aug. 22, Cointelegraph reported that WeChat, China’s biggest messaging app that has over 1 billion active monthly users, banned the accounts of cryptocurrency investors, users and businesses. At the time, Lanjinger, a local financial media outlet, reported that the accounts of Deepchain, Huobi News, Node Capital-backed Jinse and Coindaily were suspended or taken down permanently, as they violated its …