Platforms-as-a-Service: Offering a quicker route to market for the coming Digital Asset age

US stocks closed higher on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq gaining 1%, the S&P 500 rising 0.6%, and the Dow advancing 0.7%, as renewed enthusiasm for AI-related stocks lifted market sentiment.

SpaceX went public in June as a rocket company. On October 20 it reported as something else entirely: an AI infrastructure business, financed by a satellite broadband network, with a launch division attached. Rockets generated 12% of third quarter revenue and lost money. The AI segment generated 52% of revenue and consumed 84% of capital expenditure. Starlink generated 85% of operating profit.

Standard Chartered has signed definitive agreements to acquire 100% of Zodia Custody UK Limited, folding its regulated digital asset custody business into Securities Services. Zodia Solutions will be set up under SC Ventures with bank investors including Northern Trust, NAB Ventures, Emirates NBD and Investcorp.

Bybit Fintech FZE has secured a Virtual Asset Service Provider licence from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority for Exchange Services, covering spot trading. Bybit’s Peter Loo said the firm hopes to add derivatives, subject to regulatory approvals. Its international Dubai headquarters opened in 2022.

ATFX Connect has released its Q4 2026 Institutional Edge, examining the geopolitical, monetary policy and fiscal pressures shaping global financial markets in the final quarter of the year.

The Nasdaq 100 is trading at 29,382. After reaching a recent high of 29,957, the index reversed sharply and has been recording a series of lower highs and lower lows.

FM Summit London returns to Old Billingsgate on 24 November 2026 for its 15th edition, with a curated one-day format aimed at senior executives. LMAX Group, Plus500, oneZero and MetaQuotes are among confirmed exhibitors, with Business Connect meetings, roundtables and an opening event at The Folly on 23 November.

GCEX has launched European-style, fiat-settled options on Bitcoin and Ethereum with monthly expiries for eligible professional and institutional clients. The service runs through the GCEX OTC desk, with pricing from Tier 1 liquidity providers and reporting on XplorPortal. GC Exchange Limited is authorised by the UK FCA

Wall Street closed mostly higher on Tuesday, led by a nearly 1% gain in the Dow. In Asia, South Korea’s Kospi rebounded 2.7% and Japan’s Nikkei gained 0.8%.

Brent crude is trading at $111.70. The latest price action show the recovery continuing toward $111.70, suggesting that demand has returned after the sharp correction.