According to Bloomberg, Andrei Kazantsev, the bank’s global head of crypto trading, revealed the plan during a Goldman client webinar on Tuesday, saying the plan is inspired by surging interest from its clients. He also stated that Goldman Sachs planned to launch cash-settled Ether options “in due course.”
Goldman Sachs (AUM $2.1 trillion) became the first major U.S. bank to offer over-the-counter bitcoin options last month after partnering with crypto merchant bank Galaxy Digital and becoming the first major U.S. bank to do so. Options are financial derivatives that investors use to increase yield or hedge risks, whereas over-the-counter transactions are typically larger trades that are negotiated privately and off-chain. Options, which were formerly linked mostly with traditional markets, have been increasingly appealing to crypto traders venturing into Ethereum’s DeFi ecosystem over the years, because they allow them to hedge their risk and earn yields.
With the crypto market exploding in recent years, particularly since 2017, institutional players have been vying for a piece of the action, with banks that had previously remained on the sidelines increasingly taking on greater risk by participating as principals in transactions.
Since the bank began offering OTC Bitcoin options in mid-March, clients have been more interested in Ether, which they now view as a “more investable asset class,” according to George Lewin-Smith, an associate on the bank’s digital-assets team.
Much of the focus in the Ether community has been on the long-awaited transition from Proof Of Work to Proof Of Stake, also known as “the merge.” This upgrade is widely regarded as the ultimate catalyst for the price of ether, prompting investors to vehemently demand the introduction of Ethereum-based products from their banks and firms.
Although Goldman has yet to begin offering spot crypto trading, another highly sought-after product, it does currently provide access to a variety of European and Canadian exchange-traded products that can be used as a proxy as the Securities and Exchange Commission tightens its grip on so-called crypto securities and exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Intel’s new bitcoin mining chip, the Intel Blockscale ASIC, will ship in Q3 2022 to select customers.
