London-based Bitcoin firm First Global Credits, which enables traders to use cryptocurrency to be used as collateral margin to trade ETFs, stock trades and commodity futures, have reported a record high for Bitcoin margin trading for the month of November.
The monthly record high of $12 mln of trading volume dwarfs the previous monthly high set in February 2016 of combined stock, futures and Bitcoin to fiat currency trading on the site which totaled $2.1 mln.
First Global Credits launched its investment service in 2014, promising to bridge the gap between cryptocurrencies and global stock markets.
The company platform provides traders with a variety of US stocks ranging from healthcare to technology as well as shares on the London Stock Exchange, such as Barclays Bank and Vodafone.
Trump causes pump
Communications Director Marcie Terman is quoted in Finance Magnates as saying:
“The explosive volatility in the US stock market following the US election of Donald Trump caused a sharp increase in the number of new deposits followed by an increase in the size of trades being executed on the platform.”
“The number of traders verifying live accounts has also increased 25 percent over October and November. That coupled with a record number of old traders returning to take advantage of the profit opportunities in the market have all come together to cause the significant increase in the volume of trading on the site,” she added.
Hacking concerns
“This market volatility combined with conversations I am having with people about their fears following August’s Bitfinex hack has become clear that more and more Bitcoin traders are looking critically at the exchanges they choose to work with. We are seeing a sharp rise in the size of customer accounts alongside more serious questions being asked before traders are willing to deposit actual funds in an account,” stated Ms. Terman.
“Perhaps more serious traders are attracted to our business model. These people have clearly stated that exchanges that don’t publish their management details or ones that choose to domicile in questionable jurisdictions are possibly doing so because if problems develop it is easier to disappear without reprisal.”
Holding onto Bitcoin position
First Global moved their service onto a new bank grade trading platform in July and has increased the number of markets available to trade on the platform by more than 30 percent over the past 12 months.
The company claims that as a result of the combination of these new markets as well as new and old customers returning, they have seen a massive 600 percent increase in revenue for 2016 to date.
“This is a very exciting time to be involved in a Bitcoin capital market company,” said Terman.
She further adds:
“As the price of Bitcoin rises people become more committed to retaining their position in the cryptocurrency. This means there is less interest in trading in and out of Bitcoin and a more serious search for ways to make the currency productive while holding onto a Bitcoin position to reap the anticipated benefits from upward surges in currency value.”