ICE CEO Expects Bakkt To Launch Later In 2019

Jeff Sprecher, the CEO of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) said that he expects for the crypto platform Bakkt to launch later this year after he was asked during an earnings call a couple of days ago so we are finding more about it in today’s crypto news.

The call was meant for ICE’s financial results for 2018 and Sprecher explained that the company spent more than $1 billion on strategic investments such as the launch of the platform. ICE has now more than 23 leading global exchanges with the New York Stock Exchange included.

The CFO of the company Scott Hill further explained:

 “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.”

When Sprecher was asked what he thinks the expected returns or revenue will be from the investments including Bakkt, he said that it is basically 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 continued to explain how Bakkt is an independent platform apart from ICE and has its own management team and different infrastructure. He also pointed out that the project’s infrastructure has caught the eye of many high-profile investors such as Starbucks and Microsoft.

ICE announced the launch of the platform back in 2018 but later was set to launch in early 2019 but it turned out to be delayed due to the negotiations with the United States Commodity Futures and Trading Commission.