Two of the world’s most prominent financial institutions, DBS and Goldman Sachs (GS), said they executed the first-ever over-the-counter (OTC) cryptocurrency options trade between banks, marking a major step toward institutionalizing digital assets in Asia.
The trade involved cash-settled bitcoin and ether options, allowing the banks to hedge exposure tied to crypto-linked products, the companies said in an email. Such transactions mirror practices long common in traditional finance, offering structured and customizable risk management tools for institutional portfolios.
The milestone comes amid surging demand for digital asset derivatives. In the first half of 2025 alone, DBS clients executed more than $1 billion in crypto options and structured note trades, with volumes climbing nearly 60% from the first to the second quarter, the bank said. Options give holders the right, but not the obligation, to transact in the underlying asset at a predetermined price for a specified time.
“Professional investors are seeking safe, trusted and well-managed platforms to build their digital asset portfolios,” said Jacky Tai, who heads trading and structuring at the Singapore-based institution.
“Our trade with Goldman Sachs highlights how platforms can now tap the strong credit ratings and structuring capabilities of banks to bring the best practices of traditional finance into the digital asset ecosystem,” Tai said in the statement.
Goldman Sachs, one of the earliest Wall Street firms to offer crypto derivatives to institutional clients, said the deal reflects an evolution in the market’s structure.
“The trade signifies the development of an interbank market for cash-settled OTC cryptocurrency options, an area where we expect to see continued growth as institutional investors become increasingly active,” said Max Minton, the bank's head of digital assets for Asia Pacific.
The transaction underscores how regulated banks are moving to bridge traditional finance and crypto markets through familiar tools like options, swaps and structured notes. As more institutional players adopt such hedging mechanisms, Asia’s digital asset landscape appears increasingly poised to mirror the risk and liquidity frameworks that define global capital markets.
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