The biggest cryptocurrency exchange FTX has introduced a stock trading service in the United States. It would be made available via the subsidiary’s trading platform.
Stock Trading Introduced
FTX Stocks is a new equities trading platform by FTX.US. According to a press statement issued on Thursday, it will be available to a select group of US clients at first. FTX Stocks is the first of its type, allowing stores to fund their brokerage accounts with fiat-backed stablecoins like USDC, according to the statement.
Moreover, the new platform eliminates stock trading commissions. It will allow users to trade and invest in hundreds of assets listed on US exchanges. Common stocks and exchange-traded funds included (ETFs). FTX Stocks will also be available through FTX Capital Markets, a FINRA licensed broker-dealer.
All orders will route through Nasdaq without charge for order flow following the debut of the stock trading service. This is to ensure transparent transaction execution and fair pricing, according to the news release.
The platform was not intended to make money on the first day, according to Brett Harrison, President of FTX.US. Meanwhile, all FTX US customers should have access to the stock trading platform in the following months.
The goal, according to Harrison, is to provide a comprehensive investing service to our customers across all asset classes. Additionally, they have built a single integrated platform for retail investors to conveniently trade crypto with the launch of FTX Stocks. Through a transparent and straightforward user interface, this covers NFTs and traditional stock offers.
The CEO of FTX.US further stated that a fresh retail investment experience is in high demand. It provides consumers with complete order routing transparency and does not rely on payment for order flow. They’re delighted to give their customers even more options for order execution as their product portfolio and capabilities expand. This includes the tools they’ll need to make educated routing choices.
Exchanges and Trading
In conjunction with CM Equity AG, FTX launched tokenized stock trading on the platform in 2020. Traders were able to purchase fractionalized shares of Tesla, Netflix, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple. Users in the United States and other restricted jurisdictions were unable to access the site at the time.
Meanwhile, the latest development comes just a week after the crypto exchange’s founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, purchased a 7.6% interest in online brokerage platform Robinhood. At the time, it valued at $648 million.
At the time, Bankman-Fried stated that the shares were an investment and that there were no plans to influence Robinhood’s control. Other competitors have sought to offer stock trading in addition to FTX. In April 2021, Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trade volume, made a similar offer.
Binance, in partnership with CM Equity AG, enables consumers to purchase fractionalized Tesla shares. Coinbase, MicroStrategy, Apple, and Microsoft later added. However, in July 2022, the exchange giant declared that it will no longer support stock tokens, thereby ending purchases.
