The times they are 'a changing.
While there is much talk in the equities market about new veues such as Members Exchange or the battle between upstarts like IEX and the incumbents or Rule 606 changes, one can often forget new sectors such as cryptomarkets and its blossoming trading landscape. One such new crypto venue is IronX Exchange, a joint venture between IronFX, the global multi-asset broker and EmurgoHK, the Cardano (ADA coin) creator.
IronX operates as a global collaboration with Hong Kong-based blockchain accelerator, EmurgoHK, and IronFX, the global multi-asset broker. It provides the best of both trading roles, with traditional trading (IronFX) and cryptocurrency trading (courtesy of EmurgoHK) and has a full range of both crypto and fiat wallet funding options available.
Traders Magazine caught up with its Chief Executive Officer Dimitris Hatzis, which is just concluding its initial coin offering and recent launched a beta version of its platform at IronX.com. The exchange has a full range of both crypto and fiat wallet funding options available and has raised $26,319,447.92 via its recent IRX token sale.
TRADERS MAGAZINE: Tell us a little about IronX.
Dimitris Hatzis: IronX first began in July 2018 as a joint venture between IronFX and EmurgoHK. It has been evident that there was a need for a regulated exchange that offers physical cryptocurrency trading instruments and seamless crypto and fiat funding options. We, therefore, decided to develop a bridge between cryptocurrencies and traditional online trading, with an exchange solution for clients who want to trade either crypto or fiat CFDs or both.
Thanks to our partners and our in-built infrastructure, IronX allows crypto investors the ability to diversify their portfolio in the traditional investment world and provides a secure platform for non-crypto traders to invest in crypto assets. Under one umbrella, we have combined the services that offer easy access for beginners and enlarged trading functionalities for experienced traders, and we expect to facilitate the safe and regulated trading of cryptocurrencies for years to come.
TM: What is the recent round of funding going to be used for?
Hatzis: At IronFX, we aim to ensure that our clients are getting the maximum from their trading experience. We are always searching for new ways of expanding our company services. A highly promising space for us is cryptocurrencies trading. We stood back, took a holistic look at the crypto industry and identified the glaring need for a fully regulated and secure solution for the existing and potential traders.
We have partnered with EmurgoHK, creators of the Cardano and highly successful ADA coin to create a world-class crypto exchange, which will be regulated and secured. The name of this project is the IronX Exchange. The recent round of funding is going to be used for the development of this significant venture. The proceeds will be used as follows: 15% for marketing, 35% for operations, 10% for the legal and cap requirements, 40% for the systems development. The project is already undergoing a beta testing procedure. We are sure that the general crypto and online trading community will notice the emergence of such a high-quality option as the one that IronX will present to the market.
TM: Describe the global ICO market. What are some of the advantages of using ICOs? Disadvantages?
Hatzis: The ICO market is one of the most exciting elements of the crypto market. An ICO allows companies to raise funds without regulatory compliance, and approval from banks assuming the token is a utility and not a security token. I think most people recognise this exciting and disruptive way of raising capital. However, over the past two years, the ICO market has been attracting investors without much quality filtering, but nowadays these ICOs have largely faded. It is no longer enough to have a slick website and fairytale white paper. The focus in 2019 will be on quality products and services as well as delivery of pledges. ICOs need to deliver on their promises.
A new funding ecosystem has also emerged from this period. The revenue-raising mechanisms for ICOs are now more similar to a traditional startup project, with ICO promoters pitching entrepreneurs on the back of solid business plans. A successful white paper must have a market strategy to convince contributors in 2019, and a credible plan for business development. I believe this clear-headed approach will help counter the frequent past “scam” connotations of ICOs and provide a more robust benchmark for contributors.
TM: How are you incorporating blockchain into IronX?
Hatzis: We implemented the innovative security features of blockchain technologies when creating IronX -primarily, specific implementations in our back office and customer support, account funding, crypto-wallet infrastructure and online security mechanisms. The IronX Exchange uses blockchain to provide highly secured interconnectivity between currency exchanges and third-party institutions, which helps in facilitating a higher level of security and ease-of-use for traders purchasing cryptocurrencies and fiat.
IronFX, EmurgoHK, and Smartologic have provided invaluable help in incorporating blockchain, with the joint goal of creating a single, user-friendly platform for traditional online and crypto traders.
