Standard Chartered launches first digital‑asset prime‑brokerage trades with LMAX

Standard Chartered, one of the world’s Global Systemically Important Banks, completed its first live digital‑asset prime‑brokerage transactions on LMAX Digital. The pilot covered spot Bitcoin (XBT/USD) and Ether (XET/USD) with T+1 settlement through the bank’s UK branch and final settlement on its digital‑asset custody platform in the DIFC, Dubai. The trades demonstrated a bank‑grade intermediation model that integrates Standard Chartered’s credit and risk controls with LMAX’s regulated execution, matching and post‑trade infrastructure. Executives highlighted the significance: Alison Higgins, Head of Prime Services, said the pilot supports the bank’s broader strategy to offer a full institutional‑grade digital‑asset platform, while LMAX CEO David Mercer noted that the partnership fills a missing credit‑counterparty mechanism in the crypto market.

The successful test validates core functions such as credit, margin, risk management, trade booking, settlement and reporting within established regulatory frameworks, offering institutional clients seamless access to digital‑asset liquidity through a prime‑brokerage framework. The collaboration is positioned as a step toward broader adoption of institutional digital‑asset services.