Nasdaq will launch two new indices tracking cryptocurrency prices on Feb. 25, the company announced in an update to its website on Feb. 12.
The indices — the Bitcoin Liquid Index (BLX) and the Ethereum Liquid Index (ELX) — will offer real-time price updates in thirty-second intervals for clients using NASDAQ’s Global Index Data Service (GIDS).
BLX and ELX are the product of United States blockchain and crypto asset market data company Brave New Coin.
“(BLX and ELX) are each designed to provide a real-time spot or reference rate for the price of 1 BTC and 1 ETH respectively, quoted in USD, and based on the most liquid ends of their markets,” Nasdaq explains, adding:
“Both indices are calculated using a methodology that has been independently audited against key IOSCO principles.”
Nasdaq has taken an increasingly hands-on approach to cryptocurrency-related products and services, particularly over the past year.
In September, the company began looking into adding crypto data sets to its market analytics suite after considerable demand. Later, it emerged its own Bitcoin futures would launch some time in the first half of 2019.
In January, CEO Adena Friedman went on record to state her belief that Bitcoin could become a major world currency in future.