Bakkt Holdings, Inc. announced last week that it is soon offering users and partners the ability to buy, sell, and hold Ethereum (ETH), the worlds second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap.
Users can also send Ethereum to family and friends directly through the Bakkt App. With the addition of Ethereum to its existing capabilities with Bitcoin, Bakkt will offer users the ability to access two cryptocurrencies representing more than half of the total market value of all cryptocurrencies.
“Bakkt users have already enjoyed the apps capabilities to leverage bitcoin and we are confident that our addition of Ethereum will be a complement to our growing ecosystem of partners and assets,” the exchange said in a statement.
Why add Ethereum？Bakkts addition to Ethereum comes at a time of growing interest and adoption of cryptocurrencies.
In its “U.S. Consumer Crypto Survey,” Bakkt found nearly half of respondents had bought some form of cryptocurrency within the last year, underscoring the growing popularity of cryptocurrency. Many non-adopters also expressed interest in adopting the asset class before 2021 ends.
Now, in addition to bitcoin, partners can integrate with the Bakkt platform to enable their users to buy, sell and send Ethereum. Institutional clients can also choose the Bakkt Warehouse for custody of Ethereum.
“At Bakkt, providing flexible opportunities for users to enjoy their digital assets is a top consideration, and adding Ethereum brings a popular and growing cryptocurrency to our roster,” said Bakkt CEO Gavin Michael in a statement. “Bakkt users have already enjoyed the apps capabilities to leverage bitcoin and we are confident that our addition of Ethereum will be a complement to our growing ecosystem of partners and assets,” he added.
Ethereum has grown in popularity over the past year, with use cases like decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) playing their part in growing the ecosystem to a $500 billion market cap.
