Hidden Road, a leading prime brokerage supported by Citadel Securities, a prominent American market maker, is expanding institutional exposure to digital assets through a collaboration with Bitfinex.
Bitfinex recently announced a partnership with Hidden Road on June 13, which will bring new digital assets and security tools to the brokerage’s institutional offerings. Through this partnership, Bitfinex will assist Hidden Road in introducing or expanding services like derivatives trading, spot trading, peer-to-peer financing, over-the-counter (OTC) trading, margin trading, and more.
The latest affiliate of Hidden Road is managed by the owner of Tether, a well-known stablecoin issuer. Bitfinex, a cryptocurrency exchange owned and operated by iFinex, also falls under the same ownership as Tether. Paolo Ardoino, the CEO of Tether, also holds the position of chief technology officer (CTO) at Bitfinex.
“We are delighted at Bitfinex to provide customers with cutting-edge trading features, deep liquidity, and a wide range of trading pairs, all backed by a solid infrastructure with strict security measures,” shared Bill Brindise, head of business development at Bitfinex. He added, “I am confident that Hidden Road’s clients will appreciate exploring the various products we offer to assist institutional and professional investors in gaining exposure to digital assets.”
In a recent development, Hidden Road ceased its collaboration with Bybit due to KYC issues in May. The decision was made following conflicts in Know Your Customer (KYC) verification processes and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures between Hidden Road and Bybit.
Established in 2018, Hidden Road specializes in prime brokerage services across various asset classes, including forex, precious metals, and cryptocurrencies. The company had plans to raise $120 million in fresh funding with a valuation target of $1 billion by April 2024. Michael Higgins, Hidden Road’s global head of business development, emphasized the company’s commitment to offering clients cutting-edge technology and efficient workflows for a seamless experience across different products and asset classes, including digital assets.
The integration with Bitfinex highlights Hidden Road’s dedication to expanding access and choices for its counterparties. Despite reaching out to Hidden Road for a comment on the collaboration, Cointelegraph did not receive a response by the time of publication.
In a related note, ‘Bitcoin Layer 2s’ are being questioned for not truly being L2s, and the significance of this issue is being explored.