The Chief Executive Officer of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) said that he expects Bakkt - the company’s digital asset platform, to launch at some point later in 2019.

Bakkt Launch Later in 2019

The Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is the operator of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), as well as of 22 major global exchanges.



Speaking at an earnings call on February 7th, the CEO of the company - Jeff Sprecher, said that he expects that ICE’s digital asset platform - Bakkt, to launch later in 2019.



Another high-ranked executive - Scott Hill, CFO at ICE, was also asked about the expected returns from certain recent investments, which include Bakkt. He said that the platform is more of a “moonshot bet”:



So it’s a bit of a moonshot bet and it’s been organized in a manner that is very different than the way ICE typically does businesses […] They’re well along in building out an infrastructure that I think you’ll see launch later this year.



He was also asked about the expenses that Bakkt will supposedly bring, based current financial performance. The CEO revealed that Bakkt will generate between $20 to $25 million of expenses based on the run rate throughout the first quarter:



And finally, our investment in Bakkt will generate $20 million to $25 million of expense based upon the run rate in the first quarter. We will update you on progress at Bakkt and the level of investment as we move through the year.

An Entirely Independent Venue

Another interesting thing Sprecher added was that Bakkt is designated to exist entirely on its own - completely independent from ICE.



The digital asset platform will have its own offices, infrastructure, and management team. In fact, as My Bitcoin News recently reported, Bakkt has already announced certain free vacancies.



Hill also noted that they regard Bakkt as a long-term project and that he doesn’t see it as an agenda for 2019.



I think Bakkt is really an investment […] That’s more about the future and revenue and market opportunities that we see in the future and less about 2019 topline. - He said.



Bakkt recently made its very first acquisition. The move was geared toward expanding the company’s compliance capabilities.



What are your thoughts on Bakkt? Let us know down below!

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