Cryptocurrency news is all over the place right now. Bitcoin is price shoots up, Facebook is releasing the Libra token, and unsurprisingly, John McAfee wants to build Cuba a native cryptocurrency.
Success despite uncertainty
However, the inherent volatility of cryptocurrency remains a driving force in the digital asset market. It is a force that is facing management from various regulatory bodies, both national and international. In an effort to protect consumers from the potential to lose everything, from hack or from market crash, government agencies are hoping to ensure that cryptocurrency trading follows the rules they have set out for financial transaction safety.
There is a long way to go in this regard. Countries like the United States and Canada are basically dragging their feet. Other countries, such as Iran, Bangladesh, and Bolivia, have banned cryptocurrency altogether. Still others are toeing the line between legal and illegal. China, for example, has issued a ban on banks dabbling in cryptocurrency. Yet the country remains the world’s largest bitcoin trading market.
All these issues aside, an exciting rash of new exchanges are hitting the market, offering fresh, new investment platforms and opportunities to take advantage of a very positive, possibly even bullish, market.
The good
Existing exchanges are adding new features to their service offerings. Popular cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin just announced the launch of a derivatives trading platform. Reports state the new offering will allow trading with up to 20x leverage. The goal is to make pricing fair and more competitive.
KuCoin plans to provide insurance protection with full transparency. The insurance will be backed by an auto-deleveraging system in the event that insurance funds prove insufficient to cover losses.
Other major exchanges are also making progress. Binance Singapore just launched. It has already seen major growth, and fully intends to drive a major cryptocurrency market in Singapore.
The great
Meanwhile, new, sleek, and shiny cryptocurrency exchanges are literally flooding the market with unique, never-before-imagined capabilities and features.
BQT is one such exchange. The acronym stands for Better, Quick, Transparent. It is a complete platform offering a wide variety of functionality, some standard, some revolutionary.
The BQT platform offers convenient, yet typical features such as an interactive, flexible trading environment within its trading platform. It also offers a secure and flexible wallet. A hedge fund is coming soon.
Beyond these convenient, yet standard features, BQT has some pretty unique functionality. First, the platform offers an educational component. Dubbed BQT University, it is open to anyone wishing to start a career in blockchain, or simply to learn more about what they are invested in. This is pretty great for the blockchain world.
Additionally, the BQT platform is truly interactive, not just amongst traders, but also within the greater blockchain community. Of its 43 pairs, one is the Binance native coin, BNB. In other words, rather than trying to compete with what ought to be its biggest competitor, BQT is creating a cooperative environment, leveraging the options of exchanging cryptocurrencies.
The not so good
High-frequency trading (HFT), a popular but controversial entry point for many fiat traders, has made its way into cryptocurrency markets. Using a process called colocation, whereby client servers are placed in the same geographic location or cloud as the exchange, HFT clients gain the ability to trade from 70-100 times faster than the average trader.
Gemini is the largest name in the business offering colocation. Gemini has plans to open another colocation option soon in Chicago.
But the cryptocurrency exchange giant certainly isn’t alone in its endeavors. According to Singapore-based exchange Huobi, some of their individual clients trade up to 800,000 times per day.
While HFT is not everyone’s cup of tea, some claim that it provides previously unseen benefits to the market as a whole. Matthew Trudeau, CSO at another HFT trading platform, ErisX, sees the proliferation of HFT trading as a symbol of positive growth, stating:
This phenomenon has occurred in other asset classes as trading has become more electronic and more automated. Market makers and arbitrageurs are able to trade more efficiently, which improves price formation, price discovery and liquidity. Arbitrage opportunities may become fewer and more fleeting, which is a sign of a more efficient and maturing market.
The future
Regardless of regulatory changes or the success or failure of major cryptocurrency endeavors such as Libra, the rapid growth and expansion of trading platforms of all sorts is fantastic news for the overall market. Cryptocurrency is not just here to stay. It is here to succeed.