Update March 6, 11:15 am UTC:  This article has been updated to include quotes from Deutsche Börse.

German securities marketplace Deutsche Börse has officially launched its own cryptocurrency trading platform targeting institutional clients.

Deutsche Börse announced the launch of its proprietary crypto spot platform for institutional clients, Deutsche Börse Digital Exchange (DBDX), on March 5.

Launched in collaboration with the custody provider Crypto Finance, the DBDX offers a regulated and secure ecosystem for trading, settlement and custody of crypto assets.

The new DBDX platform will offer institutions to trade Bitcoin ( BTC ) and Ether ( ETH ) against the euro initially, a spokesperson for Deutsche Börse told Cointelegraph.

Tnitial trading on the DBDX will take place on a request-for-quote (RfQ) basis, which is used when a business solicits quotes from select suppliers and contractors. The RfQ trading will be followed by a multilateral trading facility, which is a trading system facilitating the exchange of financial instruments between multiple parties.

"RFQ allows traders to ‘request a quote’ from bilateral counterparties based on the security and quantity," a Deutsche Börse representative said, adding that this process is fully automated on the firm's trading system. "Multilateral trading will be facilitated int the so called 'central lit order book' in which all trading members can see the prices being offered or requested," 

"DBDX is a gamechanger because it offers trading, settlement and custody with in the same group and does not rely on external parties for parts of the value chain. In addition the offering of DBDX is embedded in the highly regulated environment."

The DBDX plans to provide its crypto trading services to clients in Germany and other European markets, the announcement notes.

“Our new solution is a game changer for digital ecosystems. We aim to provide trusted market operations for crypto assets, ensuring transparency, security, and regulatory compliance for institutional clients in Europe,” Deutsche Börse’s head of digital assets, Carlo Kölzer, noted.

He mentioned that the new platform is the first step toward realizing Deutsche Börse’s ambition in the Horizon 2026 strategy to play a leading role in the digitalization of asset classes.

Deutsche Börse originally announced its intention to launch a digital asset platform in late 2023. In February, Crypto Finance received four licenses from the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), which enabled the firm to provide regulated digital asset trading, settlement and custody services in Germany. The regulatory milestone became another precondition to start the DBDX.

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Deutsche Börse’s latest move into offering cryptocurrency trading further reaffirms the company’s positive approach to cryptocurrency as the firm has been actively involved in the crypto industry in the past years.

Xetra, the electronic trading platform of Deutsche Börse, has listed multiple cryptocurrency-related investment products , including various Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded products by major European issuers like 21Shares.

The securities marketplace has also been actively exploring the benefits of blockchain for operations like securities financing.

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