Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street banking giant, is looking to expand its crypto derivatives services. According to a Bloomberg story, Goldman Sachs is investigating over-the-counter bilateral crypto options.
This will make Goldman one of the first Wall Street titans to offer institutional clients a larger choice of crypto derivatives. These bilateral options essentially allow crypto holders, such as hedge funds and Bitcoin miners, to customize trades in order to hedge risks or improve yields.
The crypto options market is still in its inception, with only a few major firms such as Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd and Genesis Global Trading Ltd dominating. Goldman Sachs, on the other hand, already has some expertise with crypto derivatives, having sold BTC and ETH futures and options since last year.
Surprisingly, the announcement comes on the same day that President Biden issues a crypto executive order that takes a more lenient stance on crypto assets. In addition, Goldman’s global head of crypto trading, Andrei Kazantsev, stated in December that the bank is seeing an increase in demand for crypto derivative-type hedging.
Goldman Sachs to offer Ethereum Funds to Clients
In related news, Goldman Sachs has filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to provide Ether (ETH) funds to institutional clients through Galaxy Digital.
“Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC will receive an introduction fee” for offering the ETH funds to clients, according to the updated Form D filing.
The Galaxy Institutional Ethereum Fund has raised over $50 million from over 28 institutional investors so far. The fund’s minimum investment is presently $250,000.
The US government’s current lenient stance will encourage institutional players to enter the crypto market. Furthermore, various business laws will offer a secure atmosphere for these institutions. As a result, we should expect additional liquidity to enter the crypto market in the future.
