Markets
OTC Crypto Spot Trading Grew 95% in H1 2024: Report
Institutional demand for cryptocurrency OTC services and other enterprise offerings has surged alongside digital asset prices and the arrival of Wall Street.
According to Finery Markets, institutional spot over-the-counter (OTC) trading volume has increased by around 95% year-to-date in the first six months of 2024. The data was analyzed from more than two million trades executed through brokerages, OTC desks and hedge funds, among others.
The massive growth was observed during the second quarter of this year. Volume increased 110% year-over-year (YoY) in Q2 and peaked at 158% in April.
Growth in institutional OTC cryptocurrency trading volume during the first half of 2024
Bitcoin’s rise has spurred institutional interest in cryptocurrencies
At the time, Bitcoin spot (BTC) ETFs have been trading for more than three months, and Bitcoin hit a new all-time high in March. Speculation around Ethereum in sight (ETH) ETFs have also taken crypto markets by storm as the next step for Wall Street shareholders.
Analysts at Finery Markets stated that BTC’s ATH charge and spot ETF inflows have likely galvanized institutional demand for crypto products. More is expected on this front, as ETF market impacts typically take up to nine months for TradFi players to fully adopt the new offerings.
Interest in blockchain-based digital assets seems evident, as cryptocurrency-to-crypto trading is up 50% year-over-year, while cryptocurrency-to-fiat activity is down 12% since the start of the year.
The trend indicates that investors have stuck with the nascent industry despite recent volatility and short-term price action. Stablecoins have also taken a slice of the pie. According to Finery Markets, fiat-pegged tokens like Tether’s USDT have nearly tripled in trading volume year-over-year.
Ethereum ATH inevitable
Experts at the capital markets data provider predict that Ethereum will see similar price strength as Bitcoin following the spot BTC ETF approvals in January.
Institutions are already anticipating the green light for Ether spot ETFs before the end of the summer, as U.S. Securities and Exchange Chairman Gary Gensler suggested during a congressional hearing in June. ETF veterans like Eric Balchuns have also speculated that spot Ethereum funds will debut as early as next week. Ahead of the widely anticipated development, Ethereum trading volumes surged by around 32%