Austrian fintech unicorn Bitpanda is launching an institutional-grade cryptocurrency trading platform in response to the growing demand for institutional crypto services in Europe.
Bitpanda, a major cryptocurrency broker founded in 2014, has launched Bitpanda Wealth, a new service targeting high-net-worth individuals, family offices, external asset managers and corporate treasuries.
Announcing the news on Jan. 30, Bitpanda said that the new institutional platform was built using the same infrastructure that several major European banks trusted. Bitpanda Wealth offers a suite of services to facilitate crypto investment, management and reporting services, also featuring leverage products, exchange-traded funds, commodities and other assets.
Bitpanda is turning its attention to a sector in Europe that “seems underserved,” Bitpanda co-founder and CEO Eric Demuth told Cointelegraph.
“There’s a notable interest in this area, yet it lacks adequate solutions,” Demuth said, adding that Bitpanda has engaged with “numerous private banks and affluent clients who have expressed a need for a distinct service.”
The new institutional platform uses Bitpanda’s proprietary custody solution known as Bitpanda Custody, which applies cold storage to keep its clients’ assets safe, the CEO noted. Registered with the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, Bitpanda Custody offers segregated wallets for institutional investors, service providers, token issuers and corporate treasuries.
Demuth stated:
“When it comes to asset security, we are monitored by multiple financial market authorities, and have our funds and business practices regularly validated by external parties. We are trustees on behalf of our users, and all of their funds are held in cold storage — that’s a major difference between Bitpanda and an exchange.”
Cold storage, also known as a cold wallet, is one of the most secure ways to store the private keys that enable access to crypto holdings. Unlike online hot wallets — which are often used by crypto trading platforms — cold wallets are disconnected from the internet, significantly reducing the chances of security breaches and hacks.
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Bitpanda Wealth isn’t the first institutions-focused platform launched by Bitpanda: the firm previously launched Bitpanda Pro, a brokerage services platform and an over-the-counter trading desk, in 2019. In 2021, Bitpanda Pro rebranded as One Trading after securing a 30 million euro Series A round.
“One Trading was entirely separated from Bitpanda last year after a successful Series A,” the Bitpanda CEO told Cointelegraph.
A major crypto firm in Europe, Bitpanda has been actively working with local regulators to secure necessary licenses to provide its services. In October 2023, Bitpanda received a virtual assert service provider license in Norway. The firm also holds licenses in other European jurisdictions like Austria, Germany, France, Czechia and Sweden.
Bitpanda also assisted Raiffeisen Bank’s Raiffeisenlandesbank Niederösterreich-Wien in launching crypto trading services in 2023.
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