Standard Chartered takes $150M stake in GSR at $1B+ valuation — a major TradFi-crypto bridge play.

SC Ventures, Standard Chartered's venture arm, has invested approximately $150 million in crypto market maker GSR at a valuation exceeding $1 billion — GSR's first external investment since its founding in 2013 by former Goldman Sachs traders. The deal is framed as a strategic partnership to build regulated, scalable infrastructure connecting traditional finance with digital assets.

The move deepens Standard Chartered's already significant push into the space: the bank launched institutional custody services out of Luxembourg in January 2025, began offering spot Bitcoin and Ether trading last summer, and is reportedly pursuing a full acquisition of crypto custodian Zodia Custody. GSR, which counts over 300 liquidity partners and more than $1 trillion traded since inception, recently acquired tokenization specialist Autonomous and Architech for $57 million.

Both CEOs framed the deal…