BREAKING: Standard Chartered Opens Direct Bitcoin and Ethereum Trading to Wealthy UAE Clients — First International Bank to Do It
Standard Chartered has launched direct Bitcoin and Ethereum trading for wealthy clients in the UAE on October 14. Eligible clients can now buy and sell BTC and ETH through their existing bank accounts, with Bitcoin near $83,500 and Ether near $2,500 at the time of the announcement.
The bank says this is the first service of its kind from an international bank in the UAE, and also its first direct crypto trading offer for wealthy clients in any market. Custody and settlement stay inside the bank in a closed-loop setup, so clients do not need a separate wallet or an outside exchange account.
The service runs through Zodia Markets, backed by the bank's SC Ventures arm, and has approval from Dubai's Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, known as VARA. At the start it is only for clients who meet professional investor rules, which cover investment knowledge and liquid net worth.
This is an expansion, not a first step into crypto for the bank. It already offered institutional spot trading in the UK last year and extended that to the UAE in early September, and it already gives clients access to crypto ETFs, structured products and over-the-counter derivatives. It says it plans to take the new wealthy-client service to other markets, but gave no timetable.
For traders, the move matters because a big bank is putting Bitcoin and Ethereum inside a normal bank account, next to other wealth products. That can bring in careful, long-term money from the UAE, a growing crypto hub, even though access is limited for now and prices will still follow the wider market, ETF flows and US inflation data.
This post is news only, not financial advice. Always do your own research before buying or selling crypto.
Sources: CoinDesk, Crypto.news, TradingView
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