It’s been a long time coming. Well, sort of. Back in December 2018, Germany’s second-largest stock exchange, Boerse Stuttgart, said it was going to launch a digital asset exchange in the first half of 2019. Today, that exchange has launched; trading is now live on the Boerse Stuttgart Digital Exchange, or BSDEX for short.
Here’s everything we know.
Boerse Stuttgart Digital Exchange: A German Digital Asset Exchange
On Monday, September 23, Boerse Stuttgart said it has opened its regulated trading venue for virtual assets. Boerse Stuttgart Digital Exchange is regulated under the German Banking Act; it allows individuals to trade the euro/Bitcoin pair. At the moment, the service is available only for retail and institutional investors in Germany, but it will go live for the rest of the EU soon.
“The market in cryptocurrencies is worth billions, and more digital assets will emerge on the basis of blockchain,” said Boerse Stuttgart CEO Dr. Dirk Sturz. “Our goal is to build up the leading European trading venue for those assets.”
The crypto community appears to be reacting well to Boerse Stuttgart Digital Exchange, and understandably so. This is just the latest case of traditional institutions merging with the crypto industry. “We believe blockchain is set to bring about significant changes in the financial industry, and we want to leverage its potential to create the trading venue of the future,” said CTO at BSDEX Peter Großkopf.
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With Boerse Stuttgart, however, this is not the first time the German stock exchange has dabbled with cryptocurrencies. In 2018, the exchange rolled out an ICO platform. It also recently began trading XRP ETNs and Litecoin.
Takeaway
What do you think about the Boerse Stuttgart Digital Exchange? Do you think more traditional exchanges will follow in its footsteps? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. If you’re in the EU as well, don’t forget to see when BSDEX goes live for you.
Featured image: PixaBay
