Goldman Sachs Conducts First Over-the-Counter Crypto Trade With Galaxy

Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street heavyweight, completed an over-the-counter (OTC) cryptocurrency-related trade with the digital-asset financial company Galaxy Digital, in a transaction that the firms are characterizing as a first.

• New York-based Galaxy disclosed the trade in a press release on Monday. The transaction was described in the statement as a bitcoin (BTC) non-deliverable option, a type of cash-settled cryptocurrency options trade.
• "This marks the first OTC crypto transaction by a major bank in the U.S. as Goldman Sachs continues expanding its cryptocurrency offerings, demonstrating the continued maturation and adoption of digital assets by banking institutions," Galaxy said.
• The deal represents the continuation of Galaxy's relationship with Goldman Sachs, according to the statement.
• In March of last year, CoinDesk reported that Goldman Sachs reopened its crypto trading desk after a three-year hiatus, under growing demand from institutional clients.
• Last June, Galaxy announced that it would serve as Goldman's liquidity provider for bitcoin futures block trades on the CME exchange.
• Earlier this month, CoinDesk reported that Goldman was offering interested clients access to an ether (ETH) fund issued by Galaxy. Galaxy founder and CEO Michael Novogratz worked at Goldman for 11 years, according to a bio on his company's website.