Gemini Trust buys Omniex crypto trading platform
Updated
US cryptocurrency platform operator Gemini Trust has acquired trading technology platform provider Omniex in order to serve more institutional investors.
Omniex, which posts crypto prices on about 35 exchanges and over-the-counter (OTC) trading desks, will be rolled into a new crypto brokerage service package known as Gemini Prime. Gemini said it has been offering the service to a select client base over the past year.
Institutional-grade experience
The full rollout will integrate Omniex with Gemini’s existing custody, clearing and OTC trading capabilities, and simplify trading for institutional investors, according to a Gemini news release. Gemini pledged to provide a single access point to multiple exchanges and OTC liquidity sources, tools and algorithms to ensure best execution and trade transparency, and an institutional-grade trading experience.
“(Institutional investors) want to have one entry point and be able to trade wherever they can,” Dave Abner, Gemini’s global head of business development, told BNN Bloomberg. “Access to the entire crypto ecosystem is what people want. It’s a bridge between traditional finance and crypto finance.”
Based in Santa Monica, California, Omniex already connects to exchanges including Gemini, Binance, Coinbase Global Inc. and Bitfinex, according to BNN Bloomberg.
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Move follows Bitria purchase
The move comes after Gemini acquired Bitria, a crypto-asset portfolio management platform for wealth and assets managers last week. Gemini is competing for institutional investors with Coinbase, which introduced a prime services offering in 2021, and Galaxy Digital, which just this week hired William Burt away from asset management giant Blackstone.
Burt will serve as Galaxy’s chief operating officer after holding a managing director’s post at Blackstone.
Despite recent price slumps experienced by Bitcoin and other digital coins, more financial institutions are keen to invest in cryptocurrencies, according to Abner.
“We spend a lot of our time now educating institutions that are getting ready,” he told BNN Bloomberg. “It’s like turning a cruise ship, working with an institution, it’s a slow process. We are starting to see them getting ready to enter this market. That’s why we think that now is an opportune moment.”
Omniex team joins Gemini
In conjunction with the acquisition, Omniex’s management team will join Gemini. Omniex was founded in 2017 by CEO Hu Liang and chief strategy officer John Burnett. Both Liang and Burnett previously held crypto and blockchain-related executive positions with State Street.
Gemini is headed by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, who serve as president and CEO, respectively.
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