The Intercontinental Exchange's upcoming cryptocurrency trading platform Bakkt will officially launch on December 12, pending regulatory approval. ICE announced Monday that Bakkt could begin offering physically settled bitcoin futures contracts in December, marking the first cryptocurrency-related offering provided through the new platform. Bakkt will hold the bitcoins backing the futures contract in the ICE Digital Asset Warehouse, according to the notice, provided the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) signs off. These futures contracts will be cleared through ICE Clear US, another subsidiary of the exchange, which notably owns the New York Stock Exchange. "Each futures contract calls for delivery of one bitcoin held in the Bakkt Digital Asset Warehouse, and will trade in U.S. dollar terms. One daily contract will be listed for trading each Exchange Business Day," the announcement read. Bakkt was first announced earlier this year, when ICE announced its intention to develop "an open and regulated, global ecosystem for digital assets." At the time, the exchange also noted it would offer a one-day bitcoin futures contract, meaning clients can cash their futures products out to receive bitcoin, rather than cash. The exchange was initially expected to launch in November, pending approval by the CFTC. No reason was immediately given for the delay through December.
Digital payments startup Uphold is launching new lending and earning products in partnership with crypto lending platform Cred. Uphold Earn and Uphold Borrow, announced Monday, are designed to help customers earn interest from stablecoin holdings and borrow money against the cryptocurrencies they own, respectively. The company's new Earn product will allow customers to earn interest on Universal Dollar holdings. The Universal Dollar, announced earlier this month, is a dollar-backed stablecoin released by Uphold and a number of other startups. The dollar holdings backing the stablecoin at a 1:1 ratio are stored in Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-insured bank accounts. In other words, customers who convert dollars into Universal Dollars can custody their holdings with Uphold, and earn up to 5 percent in interest. Uphold's Borrow product will allow consumers to borrow funds against the digital assets stored with Uphold, with loans ranging from $1,000 to more than $200,000. Uphold co-founder and CEO JP Thieriot said in a statement that the new products "mark the first time that we've seen fiat currencies, stablecoin currencies and blockchain working together to benefit a mass consumer market." "Traditionally, the average consumer has been wary of digital currency for two reasons: volatility and a fear that, if they lose their key, they lose their money," he added. "Universal Dollar helps solve for both of these problems." Users have the option to custody their own private keys as part of their new accounts, according to the company.
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