Fidelity Investments, one of the leading asset managers in the world is about to dive deeper into the crypto domain as it prepares to launch cryptocurrency trading services in the coming few weeks, reported Bloomberg on May 6. The asset manager will buy and sell Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market cap and popularity, on behalf of institutional investors.
Fidelity Is Not New to the Crypto Sphere
Fidelity, with more than $2.4 trillion in assets under management (AUM), is not a newcomer to the nascent cryptocurrency market. The firm launched Fidelity Digital Assets in October last year to serve as a custody solution for Bitcoin. Fidelity’s move at the time signified Wall Street’s growing interest in digital assets and their custody.
The latest move, which has only been confirmed to Bloomberg by sources privy to the matter, puts the firm ahead of its competitors that have largely remained cautious on going all out into the volatile crypto market that has seen the prices of digital assets take a beating since January last year.
Fidelity promised in October 2018 to offer Bitcoin order routing and over-the-counter trade execution in early 2019.
The launch of the new services places Fidelity on par with brokerages such as E*Trade Financial Corp and Robinhood who provide cryptocurrency trading services to clients. However, Fidelity differs from the two brokerages firms because it only targets institutional clients while others cater to retail investors.