UPDATED 22:50 EST / APRIL 16 2019

BLOCKCHAIN

Aiming at professional traders, eToro launches new cryptocurrency exchange

Social trading and investment marketplace eToro Tuesday launched a dedicated cryptocurrency exchange targeted at professional traders.

Called eToroX, the new exchange launches with support for eight cryptocurrencies along with support for eight new stablecoins, tokens that are tied to a particular traditional currency.

The cryptocurrencies supported are primarily popular ones and include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Stellar Lumens, EOS, Litecoin, Ripple XRP, Bitcoin Cash and Dash.

The new stablecoins are backed by the New Zealand dollar (NZDX), Japanese yen (JPYX), Swiss franc (CHFX), U.S. dollar (USDEX), Euro (EURX), U.K. pound (GBPX), Australian dollar (AUDX) and Canadian dollar (CADX). EToroX maintains and controls both the issuance of the tokens and the currencies stored to back their value.

In total, eToroX offers 37 trading pairs with investors able to convert six cryptocurrencies to traditional money. “EToroX targets more advanced crypto traders by providing them with a regulated and secure environment to trade crypto assets on the blockchain,” a spokesperson for the company told Cryptonews.

The regulation in terms of eToroX comes via a Distributed Ledger Technology license issued in December by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission. That license allows it to offer services to traders in most European countries as well as a range of others countries, but notably not the U.S. or China.

EToroX is independent of an approved cryptocurrency service eToro started offering in 32 U.S. states in March.

The company has even bigger ambitions for eToroX, saying it plans to add more crypto assets, stablecoins and tokens to the exchange in the coming weeks and months. It’s also hoping other exchanges will extend support to the new stablecoins, something that isn’t impossible but will be met with resistance given that large players like Binance already offer their own alternatives.

How eToro will go in finding an audience is another matter, with some observers expressing skepticism.

“It’s a pretty saturated market in terms of crypto trading,” Arieh Levi, a senior analyst at research firm CB Insights, told Fortune. “I’m not sure there will be too much demand as the existing players will likely stick to the platforms they already use.”

Image: eToroX

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