ICE’s Bakkt Digital Asset Platform To Go Live In January

Intercontinental Exchange’s (ICE) new digital asset trading platform should be up and running on January 24th, 2019. Bakkt is the name of the platform, which the operator of the New York Stock Exchange plans to use to revolutionize digital assets trading.

Bakkt Platform

In a press release, the ICE notes that the Bakkt digital asset platform continues to elicit strong interest from people. Similarly, the operator is working around-the-clock to polish the platform in a bid to ensure all the pieces are in place and ready to perform. The platform came into being early in the year as ICE sought to expand its footprint into the burgeoning cryptocurrency sector.

Early next year is an appropriate time to launch the platform, as people will be able to trade digital assets right from the onset. Likewise, the digital asset exchange will list Bakkt Bitcoin USD Daily Futures Contracts.

The new platform will not support margin trading of BTC contracts at the start. By refraining from margin trading, the exchange hopes to support market integrity better. Similarly, it should enable trusted price information, which is key to enhancing digital currencies’ adoption and trading.

Likewise, ICE is in discussions with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The discussions center on the review of Bakkt’s Bitcoin Daily Futures contract as well as Bakkt Warehouse. According to ICE CEO, Kelly Loeffler, the new products will mark a critical shift in the evolution of cryptocurrency markets.

“First, our team is hard at work with customer onboarding and securing regulatory approvals. We’re focused on helping participants prepare for our launch, and we appreciate the tremendous collaboration among our clearing firms and customers,” Bakkt in a statement.

Bakkt Competitive Edge

The executive also expects the platform to enable access to more accessible, useful and regulated instruments. Similarly, the level of collaboration at the exchange, as well as customer and regulatory levels, is something to look out for.

The new capabilities seek to make it easy for institutional investors to trade on the platform. ICE has already secured insurance for Bitcoin in cold storage. Plans are also underway to secure insurance for warm wallet within the Bakkt warehouse.

Once it goes live, Bakkt will allow people to trade, store and send digital assets. A key use case of the platform is enabling the trading and conversion of Bitcoin against fiat currencies. Conversion into fiat should consequently allow consumers to purchase items at local startups with ease, using their cryptocoin holdings.

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