Investment Firm SoFi to Launch Crypto Exchange Next Week

San Francisco-based investment firm, SoFi has announced it would venture into the cryptocurrency industry with a planned launch of its trading platform next week Tuesday. 

In an interview granted to Fortune today, SoFi CEO, Anthony Noto stated that the recent development is as a result of consistent users’ demand for the firm to offer cryptocurrency trading services. 

The trading platform would initially provide support for three major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Litecoin (LTC), with popular crypto exchange Coinbase, tipped to offer crypto liquidity for the exchange.  

Noto made a revelation that he has long been a huge fan of cryptocurrencies, and that the technology that powers cryptos – Blockchain intrigues him. He further stated that his admiration for crypto made him invest in Bitcoin in the past. 

“I believe in the power of distributed ledger technology. But one of the things about crypto is, it is not always broadly available in a way that is easy, transparent and fast,” Noto added. 

The upcoming exchange will be operated via a separate entity dubbed SoFi Digital Assets, and “will complement SoFi’s suite of app-based investing options, which also include ETFs as well as automated and active stock buying.”

He further noted that when the platform goes live, transactions will not attract a fee at the initial stage, but will subsequently add a trading fee of 1.25% for every transaction.    

Even though SoFi’s exchange is scheduled to go live on October 1, the exchange will only be available in selected states, and will not be available to residents of states like New York and New Jersey due to regulatory bottleneck. 

However, Noto is optimistic that all issues regarding obtaining the necessary license to ensure the exchange operates fully in all 50 states, will be sorted out in the coming months.   

The new platform would see SoFi join a host of other fintech firms that have launched similar services, including payment provider Square, eToro and Robinhood. 

Meanwhile, Coinfomania reported last year that eToro obtained a license from the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC) for its crypto exchange, eToroX.