Crypto Reshaping Traditional Finance: Bitget CEO Chen on Reverse Convergence

While the integration of the cryptocurrency market into traditional finance has been a frequent topic of discussion, Bitget CEO Gracy Chen has presented a compelling argument regarding the direction of this convergence. According to Chen, contrary to popular belief, instead of the crypto market evolving to resemble Wall Street, traditional financial elements are adopting the dynamic structure and mechanisms of crypto. This reverse convergence is particularly evident in the perpetual futures market, demonstrating how crypto infrastructure is opening new avenues for traditional assets.

One of the most concrete examples supporting this thesis is observed in Bitget's US stock-linked perpetual futures products. Trading in these products on the platform has surpassed $5 billion in cumulative volume. Bitget's "Universal Exchange" (UEX) model allows users to manage traditional stocks, futures, spot markets, and crypto assets from a single account. This integrated structure is supported by trading activity concentrated around popular stocks like MicroStrategy (MSTR), Tesla (TSLA), and Apple (AAPL), which dominate social finance conversations. Chen emphasizes that everyday users increasingly desire stocks and crypto within the same application, offering a 24/7, mobile-first experience with a single balance.

Bitget offers over 30 USDT-margined stock perpetuals with up to 25x leverage and low promotional fees. Furthermore, it has launched the industry's first TradFi Quanto Perpetual Futures. This innovative derivatives market structure enables the trading of non-USD-denominated stocks using USDT without any currency conversion. This removes a significant barrier for global traders, making it as easy to trade Hong Kong and other non-dollar stocks as it is to trade Bitcoin. Chen describes this as "convergence in practice."

Examining the impact on markets, the 24/7 trading availability in digital assets and perpetual futures is eroding the traditional "weekend effect" in U.S. financial markets. The tendency to close positions on Fridays to avoid risks during market closures is changing with the continuous operation of crypto markets, pushing financial markets towards a 24-hour trading model. While institutional interest is growing, retail investors still account for the majority of current trading volume.

In a broader economic and political context, this development highlights the increasing interdependence between traditional finance and crypto. Chen notes that the previously parallel structures of the finance and crypto worlds are now becoming increasingly intertwined. Factors such as tokenization, the migration of real-world assets (RWAs) to blockchain-based infrastructure, and AI integration support Bitget's 'Universal Exchange' vision. Chen's "10% tokenization vision" anticipates that a significant portion of global capital markets will eventually transition to blockchain-based infrastructure.

Analysts and market expectations suggest that this trend will strengthen further in the coming period. Bitget aims to move beyond the traditional crypto exchange model by prioritizing tokenization, artificial intelligence, and universal market access in its strategy. The company seeks to integrate diverse asset classes such as stocks, gold, foreign exchange products, and derivatives within a single financial environment. This vision aims to provide a competitive platform for both institutional and retail investors, meeting the growing demand for TradFi products through crypto-native infrastructure.