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BTC 
ETH Standard Chartered Bank expands institutional bitcoin and Ethereum spot trading to United Arab Emirates
On September 3, Standard Chartered Bank expanded its deliverable bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) spot trading services to institutional customers in the United Arab Emirates, becoming the first Global Systematically Important Bank (G-SIB) in the country to provide this service.
The service is provided through Standard Chartered Bank DIFC, Standard Chartered Bank's branch in the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC). The bank said it is currently the only financial institution in the region that provides spot trading of institutional digital assets to global banks.
Integrated Custody and Execution Services
The transaction service launched this time is based on the custody services already operated by Standard Chartered Bank in United Arab Emirates and adds transaction execution functions. Since the transaction is deliverable, customers will actually hold the underlying assets Bitcoin and Ethereum at the time of settlement. Customers can choose their trusted custodian for settlement, including Standard Chartered Bank's digital asset custody solution launched in September 2024.
Transactions are conducted through the bank's electronic channels and integrated within its existing platform, allowing customers to access both assets through the foreign exchange (FX) interface they already use. Standard Chartered Bank DIFC is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA).
Rola Abu Manneh, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank's United Arab Emirates, Middle East and Pakistan, said: "The United Arab Emirates has established a clear digital asset regulatory framework to support institutional participation and innovation." She pointed out that combining transaction execution with custody, governance and banks 'global connectivity capabilities provides a more integrated way for customers to participate in the digital asset market.
Strategic extension from the UK to United Arab Emirates
Standard Chartered Bank launched its first institutional bitcoin and Ethereum spot trading services through its UK branch as early as July 2025, becoming the first global systemically important bank to provide deliverable cryptocurrency spot trading to institutional customers.
Christopher Parsons, senior executive officer of DIFC at Standard Chartered Bank, said: "DIFC provides a mature platform for international financial institutions to deploy global capabilities across markets." He added that the arrangement combines Standard Chartered's global market network with regulated infrastructure and is designed to serve customers across the region.
United Arab Emirates's broader digital asset strategy
This transaction service is part of Standard Chartered Bank's broader digital asset strategy covering custody, trading and tokenization. Its venture capital ecosystem is also involved in projects such as Zodia Markets and Libeara.
Standard Chartered Bank currently allows institutional customers to directly mint and redeem USDC stablecoins through its DIFC platform, a service developed in partnership with Circle. In addition, SC Ventures, the venture capital arm of Standard Chartered Bank, has established a US$100 million digital asset joint venture with Japan's SBI Holdings in United Arab Emirates, focusing on areas such as market infrastructure, compliance tools, decentralized finance (DeFi) and tokenization.
