The growing mainstream acceptance of digital assets is setting a new standard for banks and brokers in markets like the UAE, Brazil, and Turkey – enabling customers to trade cryptocurrencies directly against local currencies. But delivering a seamless trading experience requires access to deep, reliable liquidity, which can be challenging across fragmented markets. Wyden’s institutional trading platform supports multi-currency trading, helping banks and brokers tap into global digital asset liquidity while maintaining local relevance and regulatory compliance.
FX complexity in digital asset trading
At first glance, crypto markets appear borderless and universally accessible. However, trading liquidity remains heavily concentrated in pairs quoted against major global currencies such as the US dollar (USD) and the euro (EUR). For clients in regions where neither USD nor EUR is predominant, accessing crypto markets in their local currency can be difficult due to limited direct trading pairs and liquidity. Direct trading pairs between cryptocurrencies and local fiat currencies are rare on major trading platforms. However, local currency trading pairs on domestic exchanges often suffer from substantially lower liquidity, resulting in poorer pricing and increased slippage compared to major global venues.
For banks aiming to support their clients in trading digital assets denominated in local currencies, operational and liquidity challenges are significant. Managing multiple crypto/fiat pairs requires not only sophisticated trading infrastructure but also efficient liquidity sourcing and robust risk management.
Solving the challenge with FX triangulation
Digital asset FX triangulation provides a solution to the challenge of illiquidity in local currency pairs. Commonly used in traditional FX markets, triangulation enables trading between two currencies that lack a direct liquid market by routing through a third, more liquid currency – typically a major global currency such as USD or EUR. For example, to trade Bitcoin (BTC) against Turkish Lira (TRY), a platform executes two trades: BTC/USD followed by USD/TRY.
By leveraging liquid markets, triangulation ensures competitive pricing and improved execution for non-native currency pairs. Banks can offer access to a wider array of crypto/local currency pairs without the need to source direct liquidity for each pair, expanding trading options for local clients.
In turn, the same clients benefit from an enhanced user experience, seamlessly trading crypto in their familiar local currency, with the complexity of triangulation hidden from view.
How Wyden powers multi-currency trading with FX triangulation
Wyden’s all-in-one trading infrastructure for digital assets has been purpose-built to meet the multi-currency needs of banks entering the digital asset space. Wyden’s standout features include broad market connectivity, Smart Order Routing (SOR), and best execution capabilities that enable seamless trading across multiple venues.
At the heart of Wyden’s approach to multi-currency crypto trading is its automated FX triangulation engine. Drawing on FX desk-like capabilities, Wyden optimizes pricing and execution, leveraging SOR algorithms to identify the best trade path across crypto and FX markets according to current conditions. Wyden applies real-time FX rates to ensure that currency conversions accurately reflect current market pricing. The platform can also execute a single order across multiple venues, aggregating liquidity to find the optimal path for execution.
Risk management is also fully embedded within the triangulation process. Wyden automatically and dynamically hedges FX and crypto exposures in real time, with robust pre-trade and post-trade risk controls designed to ensure regulatory compliance. Comprehensive audit trails and reporting tools further enhance compliance readiness, giving banks the confidence to scale their digital asset offerings.
Strategic benefits for banks
By leveraging Wyden’s FX triangulation capabilities, banks can offer their customers the ability to trade digital assets in their local currency without sacrificing liquidity or execution quality. Such a frictionless user experience combined with deep liquidity reduces slippage and encourages higher trading activity, enhancing the bank’s competitive edge.
Wyden’s automation capabilities also reduce the operational burden and risks associated with FX triangulation, running seamlessly around the clock without manual intervention. Furthermore, banks can position themselves as market innovators, offering cutting-edge digital financial services while maintaining strict regulatory compliance.
FX triangulation in practice: Wyden x Garanti BBVA Kripto
One example of Wyden’s FX triangulation in action is the case of Garanti BBVA Kripto. The company sought to provide its Turkish clients with seamless access to digital assets while handling the operational and liquidity challenges of trading in Turkish Lira.
Through Wyden’s platform, Garanti BBVA Kripto now delivers a best-in-class trading experience, fully abstracting FX complexity from the end-user. Clients can directly trade crypto in TRY without encountering the liquidity limitations typically associated with crypto pairs in TRY in the market. At the same time, the solution ensures robust risk management and compliance, while being scalable to support Garanti BBVA Kripto’s future growth.
A new standard for digital asset market infrastructure
As digital assets continue to gain mainstream adoption, multi-currency support is poised to become the gold standard for banks entering the space. This functionality is especially critical in markets such as Turkey, the UAE, and Brazil – large and rapidly growing markets for digital asset adoption where clients expect to transact crypto in their local currencies despite liquidity challenges.
Banks looking to capture this opportunity will need infrastructure that seamlessly blends FX, risk management, and digital asset trading. Wyden’s vision is to enable institutional digital asset services that meet these needs – empowering banks to offer global crypto access with local precision.
With FX triangulation at its core, Wyden is setting a new benchmark for what’s possible in digital asset trading for banks and financial institutions worldwide.