Reports suggest that one of the planet’s largest stock exchanges is experimenting with adding information about digital assets to its Analytics Hub. The tools that the Nasdaq are hoping to incorporate will take data from a variety of sources and will be used by investors to make trading decisions.
Mainstream Interest in Cryptocurrency Continues to Intensify
According to reports picked up by International Business Times, the Nasdaq stock exchange is preparing to include cryptocurrency tracking tools in its Analytics Hub. The idea behind the hub is to provide investors and traders with market information to inform their decisions.
It was launched last year and uses machine learning and language processing to scour social media and other sources of information. The Analytics Hub takes into account sentiments expressed on social media and by retail investors, communications from central banks, event-based signals, and technical factors.
It currently only serves a range of traditional assets but the reports referenced in the article suggest that cryptocurrency data will soon come to the platform. The development represents yet more interest from Wall Street in the emerging asset class. Bill Dague, the head of alternative data at the Nasdaq said:
“Given the abundance of interest, we are exploring cryptocurrency related datasets… Whether or not we launch a crypto-related product remains to be seen.”
According to those in the know, the new function being added to the Analytics Hub is currently in the beta testing phase. There are reportedly plans to launch it in November. Interestingly, it will not be limited to just the cryptos with the largest market capitalization. It is believed to cover around 500 digital assets.
The revelation that the Analytics Hub including cryptocurrency data is not the only sign of an increased interest in the digital currency space from Wall Street. In other news this week, Citigroup have announced that they will launch digital assets receipts for the crypto industry. These will function in a similar way that an ETF would, meaning that investors do not need to hold the actual stock or asset represented by the receipt. The bank is currently in the process of making partnerships to take the idea forward.
Some close to the industry see these developments as extremely bullish. Brandon Synth of the blockchain and web decentralization project, Skycoin, looks forward to 2019 when he sees the overall market maturing:
“In 2019, the regulations will centralize the market into just a handful of leading, real coins… Then, people will be able to trade them using only a few major and controlled exchanges. So when you take down all the worthless coins and stop using exchanges that aren’t safe, it might be easier to mass adopt in 2019.”
Image from Shutterstock
