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BTC 
ETH Standard Chartered Bank expands institutional bitcoin and Ethereum spot trading in United Arab Emirates
On September 3, Standard Chartered Bank announced the expansion of institutional bitcoin (BTC/USD) and Ethereum (ETH/USD) spot trading services in the United Arab Emirates through its Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC) subsidiary. The bank issued an announcement stating that the move marks the first time that a Global Systematically Important Bank (G-SIB) has launched such a service, allowing eligible institutional customers to conduct physically delivered Bitcoin and Ethereum transactions.
Integration of execution functions into existing custody business
The new transaction execution capabilities complement Standard Chartered Bank's digital asset custody solution launched in September 2024. This feature has been integrated into Standard Chartered Bank's existing platform, allowing eligible institutional customers to trade crypto-assets through the same electronic interface used for foreign exchange transactions, and choosing to settle the transactions through a third-party custodian or the bank's own custody scheme.
Standard Chartered Bank said it is currently the only global bank in the region to provide spot trading in institutional digital assets and positioned Dubai as a hub for this service rather than a single trading venue.
Establish a compliance portal through DIFC
Standard Chartered Bank DIFC is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). The bank said that this release supports the development vision of the United Arab Emirates as a financial innovation center. Rola Abu Manneh, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank's United Arab Emirates, Middle East and Pakistan region, pointed out that the United Arab Emirates's digital asset framework is conducive to institutional participation; Christopher Parsons, senior manager of Standard Chartered Bank DIFC, emphasized the center's role in deploying global service capabilities.
Both executives emphasized that the move combines transaction execution with custody, governance and global banking connectivity, rather than launching products for retail customers. The bank did not announce a specific release date for further expansion of the service.
Regional expansion based on UK precedent
This launch in the United Arab Emirates is an extension of Standard Chartered Bank's first introduction of this capability in its UK branch in July 2025. At the time, Standard Chartered Bank became the first global systemically important bank to provide spot trading in deliverable physical cryptocurrencies to institutional customers. The regional promotion follows other institutional milestones, including the first Bitcoin spot transaction completed through a 24X national exchange.
The move is part of Standard Chartered Bank's broader digital asset strategy, covering areas such as custody, trading and tokenization, and is advancing in parallel with projects such as Zodia Markets and Libeara. Standard Chartered Bank did not disclose which specific institutional customers have committed to using the new United Arab Emirates services, and said the offers are still limited to eligible institutional customers and are not open to retail investors.
