DBS plans to launch its own digital exchange, thought to be the first to be built and owned by a leading bank.
Singapore Exchange (SGX), which runs the country’s stock exchange, will hold a 10% stake in the venture and will work with it on developing its liquidity and scale.
“We are, to the best of my knowledge, the first bank in the world to put together an integrated offering in the tokenized asset space,” said Piyush Gupta, chief executive of DBS, at the launch.
The new venture, called DBS Digital Exchange, will have three components to it. One is a regulated platform for the issuance and trading of digital tokens backed by financial assets that are not already found on public markets, such as shares in unlisted companies, bonds and private equity funds.
The second is a cryptocurrency trading exchange that will allow for spot exchanges from fiat currencies to cryptocurrencies and vice versa. The exchange will start out with four cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ether and Ripple’s XRP) and four fiat currencies (Singapore dollar, US dollar, Hong Kong dollar and yen).
