Standard Chartered has executed its first digital asset prime brokerage trades, using its own balance sheet to intermediate institutional Bitcoin trades. $BTC

The bank became one of the first Global Systemically Important Banks (G-SIBs) to test a prime brokerage model for digital assets within existing risk, compliance and market frameworks. The pilot covered spot Bitcoin (XBT/USD) with T+1 settlement through Standard Chartered’s UK branch.

Transactions ran on LMAX Digital, LMAX Group’s regulated institutional venue, with Standard Chartered Prime Brokerage acting as the credit intermediary. Settlement completed through the bank’s digital asset custody platform in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

“This pilot is part of our broader strategy to build a comprehensive institutional-grade digital asset platform,” said Alison Higgins, Head of Prime Services at Standard Chartered. David Mercer, CEO of LMAX Group, noted that the lack of credit counterparties with robust balance sheets has been a critical missing mechanism in crypto.

The move comes as flows through prime brokers and OTC desks grew at more than 10 times the rate of flows into exchanges in 2025. Most global banks have partnered with crypto-native firms or stayed on the sidelines, but Standard Chartered is stepping in as credit intermediary on its own balance sheet.

What it means for you: If this pilot scales, it could give institutions a regulated, bank-backed way to trade crypto without relying on crypto-native counterparties. That may deepen liquidity and reduce counterparty risk, but it’s still a test.

A G-SIB is now testing prime brokerage for Bitcoin, bringing TradFi balance sheets into crypto markets.

Will other G-SIBs launch similar prime brokerage pilots in 2025? 👇

#Bitcoin #PrimeBrokerage

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