Bitcoin trading up 80% at DBS Bank due to crypto crashes in 2022, says exec

cointelegraph.com:

Singapore government-owned megabank DBS is among the few companies around the world that reaped major benefits from massive cryptocurrency collapses in 2022.

DBS Digital Exchange, DBS Bank’s institutional crypto trading platform, saw a significant increase in Bitcoin (BTC) trading volumes last year. According to DBS Digital Exchange CEO Lionel Lim, the number of DBS crypto clients more than doubled in 2022 compared to the previous year.

“Bitcoin trading volumes grew 80% at the digital exchange during the same period,” Lim said in an interview with Cointelegraph on May 8.

The executive believes that the spike in demand for crypto services at DBS Digital Exchange is a consequence of crypto exchange collapses in 2022. Lim noted that DBS continues seeing a growing trend in volumes. He stated:

Evy Theunis, head of digital assets at DBS Bank, also told Cointelegraph that DBS has seen more cooperation enquiries from digital asset and blockchain firms in recent months.

Launched in 2020, DBS’ cryptocurrency exchange serves exclusively institutional investors. Despite considering expanding services to retail customers last year, DBS continues to be a members-only exchange serving corporate and institutional investors as of May 2023, Lim noted.

FTX is one of the biggest crypto exchanges that subsided in 2022. Before FTX collapsed in November 2022, the platform traded a significant amount of crypto coming from institutional investors. In March 2022, FTX launched a dedicated unit working with institutions. At the time, about two-thirds of trading volumes on FTX and FTX US were reportedly coming from institutional accounts.

While indicating a positive impact from crypto exchange crashes in 2022, DBS Digital Exchange CEO sees no influence