The Hong Kong-based platform Bitfinex launched its first trading pairs with Tether (USDT). Now it became possible to trade the stablecoin with bitcoin and ether. New pairs are listed on the exchange under the tickers BTCUST and ETHUST, respectively.
According to the Bitfinex website, the exchange intends to provide users with a set of tools suitable for a variety of trading strategies. The company believes that the opening of the USDT markets for bitcoin and ether will improve the capabilities of cross-exchange market-making in pairs with the Tether stable token.
Prior to that, Bitfinex was offering USDT only in pair with the US dollar. The option is still available on the exchange. Margin trading in the USDT/USD pair is also possible, which, in the opinion of the platform’s management, allows determining prices more efficiently and helps to hedge the risks associated with the stablecoin specifics.
Apart from Tether, there are other stable tokens available on the exchange — USD Coin, True USD, Paxos, and Gemini USD. In the future, the company plans to expand its margin trading to these stablecoins, too.
Tether is ranked eighth by capitalization among the most popular cryptocurrencies and also is the first among other stablecoins, according to CoinMarketCap.
Tether and Tron have recently entered into an agreement under which USDT should be released on the Tron blockchain, along with the already existing versions for Bitcoin and Ethereum. The token is expected to roll out on the new network in the first half of 2019. The coin will be based on the technical standard TRC-20.
Previously, Bitfinex returned nearly three dozen stolen bitcoins to its customers.