As Binance continues to expand in the industry, it has invested an undisclosed sum in the crypto derivatives platform FTX.
Announced on Friday, the move came as a strategic investment from the global exchange, which is constantly acquiring stakes in other platforms.
In addition to the equity investments in FTX, the Malta-registered exchange has also taken a long-term position in the FTX Token (FTT). This, according to the exchange, will help in the sustainable growth of the FTX ecosystem.
Per the deal, FTX will help to build out the liquidity and institutional product offerings across the Binance ecosystem, including its global exchange and over-the-counter (OTC) trading desk.
Commenting on the investment, Binance’s founder and CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, said: “The FTX team has built an innovative crypto trading platform with stunning growth. With their backgrounds as professional traders, we see quite a bit ourselves in the FTX team and believe in their potential in becoming a major player in the crypto derivatives markets. We are pleased to have an excellent partner joining the Binance ecosystem and aim to grow the crypto market together.”
The demand for crypto futures
Launched earlier this year, FTX is one of the most widely used crypto derivatives exchanges. The exchange grabbed headlines when a $150 million lawsuit was brought against it for market manipulation and selling unlicensed securities in the US. Allegations were also made that the manipulations were done by Binance, which the vocal head of the exchange denied. The charges were dropped by the court earlier this month.
“Binance is a market leader which has strong synergy with derivatives platforms, and we appreciate their global industry leadership, consistent execution, and innovation,” Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of FTX, said. “The investment will help accelerate the growth of FTX with support and strategic advisory from Binance while FTX maintains its independent operations.”
Meanwhile, Binance also acquired Indian crypto exchange WazirX and decentralized applications (DApps) analytics platform DappReview.
(Photo: Binance)
