The crypto market, associated by many with the dark web, money laundering and the Wild West, is beginning to be discussed by financiers in the same breath as derivatives, hedging instruments and compliance.
SINGAPORE (June 17): When bitcoin was born, it was a symbol of counterculture — a rebel currency with near-anonymity and a lack of regulation. A decade later, there are growing signs it is entering the establishment its creators sought to subvert.
As the cryptocurrency has surged in value, bigger investors, from trading firms to hedge funds, have increasingly turned to exchanges regulated in traditional financial centres. They are buying bitcoin futures to gain exposure to the asset while avoiding the hacks and heists that plague the industry.
