FTX, the popular cryptocurrency exchange, is still heavily investing in traditional finance, with the FTX US, its United States-based affiliate, investing in a U.S. national stock exchange, Investors Exchange (IEX).
On Tuesday, the firm disclosed in a statement that the FTX US has made an agreement to do a strategic investment in the IEX’s operator IEX Group to jointly establish a market structure for selling, buying, and trading digital asset securities.
May 2022 is likely the month IEX and FTX US will close the deal, subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions.
An FTX US spokesperson has declined to reveal any details regarding the financial terms of the partnership, putting forward the fact that the investment makes FTX a significant shareholder in IEX. The representative also pointed out that it’s the first time that FTX has invested in a UU.S.-regulated stock exchange.
The latest partnership focuses on offering services for retail and institutional investors. IEX intends to apply its current market structure and regulatory principles.
Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of FTX and FTX US, also highlights how the partnership with IEX would help in the establishment of the crypto market structure and cooperation with regulators. The CEO also added that he is a long admirer of IEX CEO Brad Katsuyama’s vision to be an exchange that believes in fairness.
IEX Investing has opened various doors of opportunity for FTX US, says the CEO. Further, he says, “With this investment, we’re aligned with one of the most trusted and innovative companies in the equities markets.”
Katsuyama, CEO and co-founder emphasized that the collaboration with FTX focuses on helping the U.S. be the largest player in digital assets around the world through talks with regulators.
Besides the strategic investment, FTX and IEX also intend to bring about a new initiative that will call investors to have a discussion with regulators on the future of the market structure for digital asset securities. However, the company has said to reveal the details some other day.
Recently, both FTX and FTX US are found to be heavily investing in traditional finance. FTX Ventures, the venture capital arm of FTX, has invested $100 million in Dave, the mobile banking application in conjunction with FTX US collaborating with Dave for crypto payments, as of last month.
FTX is also reportedly in discussion to invest in the Indian gaming startup Mobile Premier League as part of its Web3 push, as per the Sunday report by TechCrunch.
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Nancy J. Allen is a crypto enthusiast and believes that cryptocurrencies inspire people to be their own banks and step aside from traditional monetary exchange systems. She is also intrigued by blockchain technology and its functioning.
Source: https://www.thecoinrepublic.com/2022/04/05/ftx-us-announces-its-investment-in-iex-to-establish-digital-asset-securities/