One of the largest independent brokers in Brazil, XP Investimentos, will now open a crypto exchange for easing trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum in the country. The crypto exchange platform will launch in the coming few months according to a recent announcement.
XP Investimentos manages over $35 billion for over 500,000 clients. It’s part of the Grupo XP, a major conglomerate that focuses on several brands in the financial market.
Sustained Crypto Interest
XP has been researching crypto for some time now. In October of 2017 after registering the XP Bitcoin brand, it said it was studying the cryptocurrency market. One month later it hired Fernando Ulrich a crypto expert based in Brazil.
Now, it seems XP’s motivation to join the crypto space comes from existing statistics that show more people are interested in crypto in Brazil than traditional stocks.
Guilherme Benchimol, the CEO of the company at a recent event in Sao Paulo, said over 3 million Brazilians are exposed to Bitcoin while only 600,000 individuals invest in stock markets.
Now Benchimol is ready to push XP Investimentos into the crypto industry. On this he said:
“I must confess, this is a theme I’d rather didn’t exist, but it does…… We felt obligated to start advancing in this market.”
According to Brazil’s Department of Federal Revenue, XP has registered XDEX INTERMEDIACAO LTDA. A crypto exchange that will work independently from other brokerage firms owned by XP.
Thiago Maffra who is an experienced marketing official will be in charge of running the platform. The crypto exchange will have around 40 employees and has a registered capital of $7.3 million.
According to an unidentified source, XDEX will engage in over the counter crypto trading, and this could facilitate the largest banks in Brazil getting involved in the crypto market.
“It is not yet known what services the new exchange will provide. The action will be in the so-called over-the-counter market which will focus on movements of large volumes of capital and BTC.”
This move comes at a time when there is confusion among Bazilian crypto businesses and exchanges on how cryptos should be regulated in the country.
Fernando Furlan, president of one crypto association, said:
“There is legal uncertainty. Depending on the purpose, crypto can be a means of payment or a financial asset. “
Basil has three years of freelance experience writing on disruptive technologies. He focuses on breaking news and education pieces; helping to spread the gospel of Blockchain. He hopes to have his own blockchain company one day; helping the world through its innovative ledger technology
