# Standard Chartered Opens UAE Crypto Trading to Professional Investors

By John Kim

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/business/31665
Published: 2026-10-14T08:33:40.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-14T08:33:40.000Z
Section: Business

> Eligible clients can trade Bitcoin and Ether through SC Mobile, but cannot transfer crypto into or out of the bank.

Standard Chartered has opened crypto trading through its SC Mobile app to UAE clients classified as Professional Investors, marking its first global crypto trading service for wealth clients.

Clients can use existing Standard Chartered accounts to trade Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), without setting up separate wallets. The service keeps custody and settlement within the bank’s system, and clients cannot transfer crypto assets into or out of Standard Chartered.

The offering follows the bank’s Sept. 3 launch of Bitcoin and Ether spot trading for institutional clients in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). That service is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), while the wealth service is covered by licensing from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).

Standard Chartered launched the service through its Wealth and Retail Banking and Corporate and Investment Banking businesses, alongside Zodia Markets, which is backed by SC Ventures. The bank plans to expand the service to other markets over time, with no timetable or destinations specified.