In today's global financial markets, digital assets hold an increasingly vital role due to their efficiency and convenience. Within this sector, one of the most prominent areas is the highly lucrative exchange industry.
For teams aiming to enter this field, building a reliable exchange system is the first major challenge. Many opt for cloud-based exchange solutions. Currently, technology service providers in this space can be divided into two categories: those that operate their own trading services and those that do not. The debate over whether a tech provider should also run a business is long-standing. Should one focus solely on technology, or does hands-on business experience lead to more demand-aligned services? A look back at the century-long evolution of financial technology services may shed some light.
The Symbiotic Relationship Between Tech and Business
Can technical service provision and business operation coexist? Two global giants, Thomson Reuters and Bloomberg, have both faced this question.
Former Reuters Group Chairman Niall FitzGerald was once asked whether it was worthwhile for Reuters, as a financial information provider, to invest heavily in technological development. His response was telling: "If you look back at Reuters' history, you’ll see that the company has always adopted the latest technological advances to deliver information. In my view, information services and technological progress are like a couple… Our unchanging mission is to fully understand our clients’ needs, to offer products and services that outperform competitors, and to continually strengthen our brand’s market position."
This dual strategy—continuously improving technology while growing its business—has been a core part of Reuters’ philosophy. This approach continued after its 2008 merger with Thomson Corporation, forming Thomson Reuters. Today, Thomson Reuters remains one of the top three financial information providers globally and a leading platform for foreign exchange trading.
Bloomberg adopted a similar strategy. After its founding in 1981, the company initially focused solely on financial data and its proprietary terminal. In 1988, it launched a news service. At a time when the internet was still in its infancy, Bloomberg pioneered the electronic delivery of real-time financial indicators—including tables, charts, and graphs—directly to clients. The Bloomberg Terminal offered a revolutionary, all-in-one solution that reshaped financial media. Today, Bloomberg is an industry leader in financial information and trading platform technology, successfully balancing technological innovation with business growth.
This pattern isn’t limited to information providers. Many major financial exchanges also pursue a dual strategy, expanding through both technical enhancement and business acquisition. Since the early 20th century, a wave of mergers and acquisitions has created large, diversified global exchanges. A 2017 Visual Capitalist report noted that there were 60 major stock exchanges worldwide, with a combined market capitalization of $69 trillion. Sixteen of those had valuations exceeding $1 trillion, and most either owned or held stakes in leading financial technology firms.
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is a prime example. Founded in 2000 with a focus on OTC energy trading, ICE embarked on two decades of strategic acquisitions:
In 2001, it acquired the London International Petroleum Exchange (now ICE Futures Europe);
In 2002, it purchased CommodityLogic, a software and hardware firm from energy giant Enron;
In 2007, it acquired the New York Board of Trade (now ICE Futures U.S.), enabling electronic trading across a range of financial products;
Later in 2007, it bought the Winnipeg Commodity Exchange (now ICE Futures Canada);
In 2008, it took full ownership of Creditex, a credit default swap platform, and The Clearing Corp, a clearing service provider;
In 2012, in a landmark deal, the 12-year-old ICE acquired the 200-year-old NYSE Euronext for $8.2 billion;
In 2016, it acquired OTC market data technology provider CMA.
Today, ICE is one of the largest exchange groups globally in terms of listings and trading volume. The group’s technology and data services contribute significantly to revenue—at times accounting for up to 40% of total income.
The digital asset industry reflects a similar trend. Leading players often combine technological innovation with diversified business operations. In 2018, major exchanges Huobi and OKEx introduced white-label exchange services. By early 2020, Binance and KuCoin had also launched their own exchange system solutions. Bluehelix, founded in 2018, is another key provider of cloud-based exchange services. To test and refine its system, Bluehelix initially launched its own exchange, HBTC Hobbit. For a time, HBTC served as the flagship demonstration of Bluehelix’s cloud technology.
After nearly two years of development, HBTC gained considerable market recognition—reinforcing the reliability of the Bluehelix cloud system. To prevent brand-level competition with its institutional clients and to focus purely on technology services, the Bluehelix Group underwent a comprehensive rebranding in April 2020. The group split into two entities: Bluehelix (serving business clients) and HBTC Hobbit (serving retail users). Each now operates under separate brands, serving different customer segments with tailored solutions.
HBC: Bridging Technology and Business in Blockchain Finance
In April 2020, HBTC Hobbit Exchange underwent a major brand upgrade. A central feature was the new platform token, HBC. Beyond introducing innovative mechanisms like the "10x PE Daily Buy-Back" and the "Hobbit Captain incentivization program," HBC created a first-of-its-kind model that tightly integrates technology and business operations, allowing each to empower the other.
Under this model, HBC represents core equity in three products: the HBTC trading platform, HBTC Chain, and Bluehelix Cloud. HBTC commits to using 100% of its trading revenue and 80% of Bluehelix Cloud's profits to buy back HBC tokens daily on the secondary market, based on a 10x price-to-earnings calculation. This effectively channels value from platform earnings back to HBC token holders.
Through HBC, the value generated by both HBTC and Bluehelix is distributed broadly to the public rather than controlled by a small group. HBTC Hobbit became a platform shared by all token holders. Everyone—including the exchange team, angel investors, and users—shares in the platform’s success through the token’s value. All stakeholders are incentivized to maintain and increase the value of HBC.
Operating HBTC also allowed Bluehelix to accumulate hands-on exchange management experience. As a result, the Bluehelix cloud system evolved rapidly, offering clients robust technical architecture and future-ready business scalability.
Successful operational models from HBTC are shared with Bluehelix clients, and challenges encountered are preemptively addressed through tailored solutions. This combination of proven experience and ready-made solutions provides powerful support for clients launching their own exchanges quickly and smoothly.
Both HBTC Hobbit and the Bluehelix cloud system have undergone two years of market validation. HBTC offers a full product lineup and has cultivated a loyal user base. The Bluehelix cloud system now supports over 250 clients worldwide, including licensed exchanges like Japan’s Xtheta and established platforms like Korea’s Hanbitco.
Driven by a commitment to technical excellence, Bluehelix recently launched "Cone," a next-generation low-latency trading system. While maintaining high availability and massive scalability, Cone achieves end-to-end latency of under 1ms. Its release is expected to significantly raise the bar in the cryptocurrency derivatives market.
This rapid progress is made possible by Bluehelix’s expert team of blockchain and financial IT engineers. With deep experience in building financial-grade systems and a comprehensive understanding of business needs, the team has developed one of the most sophisticated digital asset management and risk control platforms in operation today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a white-label exchange solution?
A white-label exchange is a ready-made trading platform that businesses can license and customize with their own branding. It provides the technology needed to operate a digital asset exchange without building the system from scratch.
Why do some technology providers also operate their own exchanges?
Running an actual exchange allows tech providers to test, refine, and demonstrate their systems in real-market conditions. This experience helps them better understand client needs and deliver more reliable and practical solutions.
How does combining technology and business benefit users?
When a provider operates both technology and business units, they can leverage real-world insights to improve their products. Users receive a system that is not only technically advanced but also battle-tested in live trading environments.
What should I look for in a cloud-based exchange provider?
Key factors include system stability, security features, scalability, latency performance, regulatory compliance support, and the provider’s track record with other clients. It’s also helpful if the provider has hands-on exchange experience.
Can a platform token really align the interests of users and operators?
Yes, if structured transparently. A token model that shares platform revenue with holders incentivizes all parties to contribute to the platform's growth and sustainability. This creates a community-driven ecosystem where success is shared.
How important is low latency in trading systems?
Extremely important, especially in high-frequency and algorithmic trading. Lower latency means faster order execution, which can be critical for capturing market opportunities and improving user experience.
Conclusion
The question of whether to focus on technology or business is not really a choice—the most successful platforms integrate both. Strong technology provides the foundation, and real-world business operation validates and improves that technology. As more companies learn to combine these strengths, the entire industry moves toward higher standards and broader adoption.