CLS Global
Freepik

Bitcoin recorded a new ATH at $109,951.70 in January 2025 and we are witnessing a sustainable price performance in the first quarter of 2025 despite conventional markets taking a significant beating. However, we are yet to witness the level of activity many commentators predicted as the total Assets Under Management (AUM) of Bitcoin ETFs currently total below $120 billion. While this is a healthy figure, it is still a far cry from the trillions of dollars worth of money predicted in early 2024 when these funds were launched.

At the same time, the regulatory frameworks in the United States are evolving, necessitating market participants to anticipate substantial changes in the regulation and trading of digital assets.

CLS Global analyses these groundbreaking shifts in market structure and what they mean for players in the sector by drawing on its vast experience as a global market maker.

Finally a Regulatory Breakthrough

CLS Global has reached a significant milestone by resolving its regulatory challenges under a settlement agreement with the American authorities. This move shows what is to come in the future as CLS prepares the groundwork for a successful market capture. A new dynamic framework for regulated digital asset trading is evolving as regulators and industry participants demonstrate heightened maturity in regulatory compliance and proactively interact with each other to establish sustainable operational frameworks.

From SEC's involvement to improved compliance procedures, CLS Global's path toward regulatory compliance reflects the larger positive shift in the sector.

DeFi Meets Traditional Finance

Conventional trading platforms are modifying their strategies in reaction to increasing competition from Decentralized Finance (DeFi) protocols. In this hybrid market structure, liquidity providers encounter distinct problems posed by new trading ventures that merge DeFi with Centralized Finance (CeFi) while responding to the increasing institutional demand for cross-venue liquidity aggregation.

Institutional Shift

While narratives about the bull market continue to grab the headlines in the news cycle, professional market analysts of CLS Global stress the significance of easing institutional investment through the prevalence of algorithmic execution and smart order routing across multiple venues.

Analysts also point out that prime brokerage services, credit networks, sophisticated execution algorithms, and other features that closely resemble the more predictable traditional finance are required. Without these developments, institutional investment in the crypto economy will remain on the fringes and not the main driver it has the potential to become.

Technical Difficulties and Market Evolution

According to CLS Global's CEO, Filipp V: "The industry's next phase will be defined by how effectively we bridge the gap between traditional finance and decentralized systems...., Market makers who can successfully navigate both environments while maintaining robust compliance standards will shape the future of digital asset trading."

The changing landscape requires a fundamental rethink of market-making strategies, incorporating cross-venue inventory management, dynamic risk pricing across multiple blockchain networks, integration of on-chain and off-chain liquidity sources, and real-time adaptation to varying settlement finality conditions

The Road Ahead

The U.S. market's evolution towards clearer regulatory frameworks is particularly significant, as it sets precedents that could influence global digital asset investment standards. Market makers will need to adapt to new forms of automated market-making that satisfy the U.S. regulatory requirements, demands of traditional and DeFi approaches, enhanced settlement mechanisms, and more sophisticated cross-chain liquidity provision protocols.

CLS Global is looking to cater to the demands of the institutional circles and the latest regulatory regime. Its advanced trading features appeal directly to big investment funds who want a slice of the growing DeFi market but with a traditional touch that, so far, no one has been able to provide.