The head of cryptocurrency exchange Kraken’s over-the-counter (OTC) desk claims that the platform has experienced a twenty-fold increase in activity since 2018.
OTC Trading
Nelson Minier, who leads the OTC division at Kraken, made his statement on the podcast The Scoop on Aug. 20. He claimed that bitcoin and ethereum, which rank first and second in total market capitalization, are the “whales of our desk,” and see the most activity. Minier also estimated that bitcoin cash (BCH), monero (XMR) and USDT made up the remainder of the top five in terms of trading volume.
The OTC head also gave a prediction for the price of bitcoin, explaining that demand will continue to rise while supply will be cut during next May’s halving,
“I don’t see demand for this asset going down. But I do know that supply is gonna get cut in half, some time May 2019. And I think another thing I know about Bitcoin is that higher price is the best marketing tool we have.”
OTC trading continues to gain popularity as cryptoassets provide an alternative to fiat and the traditional investment markets. More analysts are beginning to refer to bitcoin as a potential “safe haven,” particularly with global economic trouble brewing on the horizon.
