Fidelity Investments is reportedly looking into the feasibility of offering the top five to seven cryptocurrencies on its Digital Asset Services platform.
Extending beyond Bitcoin and Ether
Last month, the investment firm revealed its new Digital Asset Services arm alongside plans to offer Bitcoin and Ether trading services for institutional investors, also giving them a much-anticipated custody solution for these cryptocurrencies.
Tom Jessop, head of Fidelity Digital Assets, shared at the Block FS conference in New York on Thursday the company’s willingness to extend these services to other major cryptocurrencies.
“I think there is demand for the next four or five in rank of market cap order. So we will be looking at that,” he said in response to a question posed by Coindesk.
One of the potential issues he perceives is the question of which tokens will fall into the US Security and Exchange Commission’s definition of securities, as this will significantly impact the regulation surrounding their use. ”We are waiting for that space to develop,” he noted.
Jessop added there is not a huge call from institutional investors yet to venture into the lesser known cryptocurrencies on offer, so Fidelity will focus on the top seven or so, although other aditions will be considered when the demand is there.
Right now, he says Fidelity services over 13,000 institutional clients and their main interests are in the two leading cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ether.
In August, the Bitcoin Tracker One Exchange Traded Note (ETN) became the first fully regulated financial instrument tied directly to Bitcoins, a service Fidelity offers its clients.
Given the relatively poor performance of the cryptocurrency market this year compared with 2017, many are counting on an influx of institutional investors using digital currency investment services such as that offered by Fidelity to boost prices.
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