Skip to main content

Bittrex Launches USD Fiat Trading

Bittrex Launches USD Fiat Trading

Bittrex has finally introduced fiat currency support. The US exchange, which was established in 2013, subsisted with tether as its USD surrogate until recently, before adding another stablecoin, TrueUSD, a couple of months ago. Around the same time, its CEO Bill Shihara revealed that the platform would be adding USD pairs and today they went live for corporate clients.

Also read: Weiss Ratings Publishes Complete List of 93 Cryptocurrency Ratings

More Fiat, Less Tether

Bittrex, along with exchanges such as Binance and Upbit, has been gradually weaning itself away from tether, which for a long time was the only dollar-based hedge available. It has been speculated that the desire to list other stablecoins, and to eventually pivot to USD, was partially born out of a desire to be less reliant on the notoriously opaque tether. Whatever the reasoning, Bittrex has now secured the banking facilities necessary to enable fiat-crypto trading, and in Malta Binance is believed to be following suit.

Initially, the Seattle-based exchange will offer the USD paired against BTC, tether (USDT), and TrueUSD. This means that traders can swap between dollar-pegged tokens, which could be useful in the event of needing to send dollars to another exchange, or in the event of a stablecoin slipping from its dollar peg, as previously happened to TrueUSD upon news of its Binance listing.

Bittrex Launches USD Fiat Trading

Bittrex Signs with Signature

Bloomberg reports that Bittrex has inked a deal with New York’s Signature Bank. This will allow corporate clients in certain US states to make fiat deposits. While retail investors will be unable to benefit from this facility initially, Bittrex hopes to eventually roll the service out to all users who reside in states where it is licensed. As of today, May 31, corporate traders in Washington, California, New York, and Montana can make fiat deposits. Due to the restrictions in place, which will prevent the majority of Bittrex’ three million users from being able to participate, USD trading volume is likely to be low to begin with.

Bittrex Launches USD Fiat Trading“It’s been a long path [towards securing a banking agreement],” Bittrex Chief Executive Officer Bill Shihara told Bloomberg. “It’s not just about banks being able to trust Bittrex. It’s about banks being able to trust crypto in general. And I think it’s really showing that crypto is turning the corner in terms of mainstream acceptance.”

“They really do look and pore through the entire business,” Shihara said. “They want to make sure that we’ve got robust AML/KYC processes, that we’ve got the right controls on our finances. They do background checks and everything. They really look at our business soup to nuts.”

Will you use Bittrex’ banking facilities to deposit fiat currency once they’re available to retail investors? Let us know in the comments section below.


Images courtesy of Shutterstock, and Bittrex.


Need to calculate your bitcoin holdings? Check our tools section.

The post Bittrex Launches USD Fiat Trading appeared first on Bitcoin News.



from Bitcoin News https://ift.tt/2LM3Ytb

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Economists Discuss Russia, China Potentially Developing Gold-Backed Currency That Could Undermine US Dollar

Economists have weighed in on reports that China and Russia may be developing a new gold-backed currency that could undermine the U.S. dollar’s status as the world’s primary reserve currency. Russia and China May Be Developing Gold-Backed Currency Several experts have shared their views on Russia and China potentially creating a new gold-baked currency, Fox Business reported Saturday, emphasizing that China has been buying up huge quantities of gold while Russia was forced off the U.S. dollar due to sanctions imposed on the country following its invasion of Ukraine. The news outlet noted that some experts have cautioned that these moves, along with the closer relationship that has developed between Moscow and Beijing, point to the likelihood of China attempting to launch a gold-backed currency. However, neither Russia nor China has officially confirmed plans for such a currency. Craig Singleton, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a former U.S. diplomat,...

Fidelity Discusses Bitcoin as Portfolio Insurance — Could Soon Stand in ‘Stark Contrast’ to Path Fiat Currencies Take

Fidelity Digital Assets, a subsidiary of Fidelity Investments, says that bitcoin could be considered portfolio insurance. The firm notes that the cryptocurrency “may soon stand in stark contrast to the path that the rest of the world and fiat currencies may take — namely the path of increased supply, additional currency creation, and central bank balance sheet expansion.” Fidelity Says Bitcoin Could Be Portfolio Insurance Fidelity Digital Assets, a subsidiary of Fidelity Investments, recently published a research study titled “The Rising Dollar and Bitcoin.” The research outlines “how bitcoin could be considered portfolio insurance” as the rising dollar impacts global currency markets. “The strengthening U.S. dollar is wreaking havoc among other countries and may put pressure on the Federal Reserve to soon reverse its tightening monetary actions, something that has precedent based on 1985’s Plaza Accord,” Fidelity explained. In addition, “more monetary debasement may be needed to ...

Mt Gox Creditors Updated, Trustee Says Rehabilitation Custodian Is ‘Currently Preparing to Make Repayments’

On August 31, 2022, the Mt Gox trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi explained in a recent letter that the rehabilitation custodian is “currently preparing to make repayments” to Mt Gox creditors. Trustee Updates Mt Gox Creditors — Repayment Date and Exchange Still Unknown Last week speculation and rumors concerning the release of 140K bitcoin ( BTC ) from Mt Gox littered social media platforms and headlines. Bitcoin.com News covered the situation six days ago as a number of people and Mt Gox creditors called the rumors “ fake news .” During that same period of time, a bitcoin whale transferred 10,000 BTC to unknown wallets, and a 2018 annotation , heuristics, and clustering methods show the funds likely originated from the June 2011 Mt Gox hacks. Following the mysterious whale transfer, last Wednesday, Mt Gox published an official update from the court trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi that explains the court is “currently preparing to make repayments” to creditors. Mt Gox creditors have been wait...