Citadel Securities, DTCC, ICE Back LayerZero's 'Zero' Blockchain for Institutional Crypto

VADODARA, February 11, 2026 — Citadel Securities, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) will support the development of LayerZero's new blockchain, "Zero," according to a report by Decrypt. This latest crypto news highlights a coordinated push by traditional finance giants to address structural constraints in crypto trading, clearing, and settlement for institutional investors. The "Zero" blockchain, scheduled for launch this fall, promises high throughput and low costs by eliminating the need for all participants to process identical transactions.

Investigation: The Institutional On-Ramp Architecture

LayerZero's announcement details a direct response to pain points in institutional crypto adoption. According to the Decrypt report, the "Zero" project specifically targets inefficiencies in trading, clearing, settlement, and tokenized asset handling. Market structure suggests these constraints have historically created significant Fair Value Gaps (FVGs) between spot prices and derivative markets. Consequently, the involvement of Citadel Securities—a dominant market maker—alongside DTCC for clearing and ICE for exchange infrastructure, forms a comprehensive institutional stack.

Underlying this trend is a technical pivot away from monolithic blockchain designs. LayerZero states that "Zero" achieves scalability by not requiring universal transaction processing. This architecture likely employs a form of sharding or optimized consensus, reducing latency for high-frequency trading desks. The project follows LayerZero's earlier move to appoint Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood to its advisory board, signaling a focus on long-term, growth-oriented institutional capital.

Market Context & Historical Precedent

Historically, major infrastructure announcements from traditional finance entities have preceded sustained capital inflows. For instance, the launch of Bitcoin ETFs in 2024 catalyzed a multi-quarter rally as institutional Order Blocks formed. In contrast, the current market sentiment sits at "Extreme Fear," with a Crypto Fear & Greed Index score of 11/100. This divergence creates a potential liquidity grab scenario where fear-driven retail selling meets stealth institutional accumulation.

, this development aligns with a broader trend of traditional financial infrastructure migrating on-chain. The DTCC's involvement, in particular, mirrors its historical role in settling traditional securities, now applied to tokenized assets. According to Ethereum's official documentation on scalability, solutions like EIP-4844 (proto-danksharding) aim to reduce costs for layer-2 networks, a parallel effort to the throughput goals of "Zero."

Related institutional developments are accelerating globally. For example, Hong Kong's pending stablecoin license decision could further legitimize asset tokenization. Similarly, Robinhood's launch of an Ethereum L2 testnet targets retail accessibility, while Coinbase adding GWEI to its listing roadmap highlights exchange diversification. These moves collectively pressure legacy systems, as seen in South Korea mandating crypto audits after a Bithumb error.

Technical Architecture & Price Action Implications

The "Zero" blockchain's design directly impacts market microstructure. By decoupling transaction processing, it reduces network congestion and minimizes gas fee volatility—a critical barrier for algorithmic trading firms. On-chain data indicates that high Ethereum gas fees have previously forced institutional players to operate off-chain or on centralized exchanges, fragmenting liquidity. This new architecture could consolidate liquidity pools, tightening bid-ask spreads.

From a price action perspective, Bitcoin currently trades at $68,995, down 1.97% in 24 hours. This level coincides with a key Fibonacci 0.618 retracement from the 2025 all-time high, acting as a major support zone. Market structure suggests that a hold above this level, coupled with institutional news flow, could form a bullish Order Block. Conversely, a break below invalidation would signal continued distribution. The Volume Profile shows significant accumulation between $65,000 and $70,000, indicating institutional interest.

By The Numbers

Why It Matters

This partnership matters because it addresses the final barriers to full-scale institutional adoption. Structural constraints in clearing and settlement have limited the size and frequency of institutional trades, creating liquidity fragmentation. By leveraging DTCC's expertise in settlement and ICE's exchange infrastructure, "Zero" could standardize post-trade processes for tokenized assets. Consequently, this reduces counterparty risk and operational costs, enabling larger Order Blocks from pension funds and asset managers.

, the timing during "Extreme Fear" sentiment is strategic. Market analysts note that fear-driven markets often overlook infrastructure developments, allowing savvy institutions to accumulate positions at a discount. The involvement of Citadel Securities, a firm with deep liquidity provisioning experience, suggests a focus on market-making and tight spreads. This could compress volatility in crypto derivatives, aligning with broader financial stability goals outlined by entities like the Federal Reserve.

Expert Commentary

"The Citadel-DTCC-ICE coalition backing LayerZero's 'Zero' blockchain represents a watershed moment for institutional crypto infrastructure. It directly targets the settlement latency and cost issues that have kept traditional asset managers on the sidelines. From a market structure perspective, this could catalyze a shift from speculative retail flows to steady institutional liquidity, fundamentally altering the volatility profile of major digital assets."

Market Outlook & Price Scenarios

Market structure suggests two primary scenarios based on the "Zero" announcement and current technical levels.

• Bullish Invalidation Level: $72,000. A sustained break above this resistance would confirm institutional accumulation and likely trigger a short squeeze, targeting previous highs near $85,000. This scenario gains probability if Bitcoin holds the $68,995 support and on-chain metrics show increased stablecoin inflows.
• Bearish Invalidation Level: $65,000. A breakdown below this Volume Profile support would invalidate the bullish structure, indicating continued distribution and a retest of lower supports near $60,000. This scenario aligns with prolonged "Extreme Fear" sentiment and a lack of follow-through from other institutional players.

For the 12-month outlook, the success of "Zero" could accelerate tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs), bridging traditional finance and crypto. Institutional adoption cycles typically unfold over quarters, not days. Consequently, the 5-year horizon may see a re-rating of blockchain infrastructure projects that solve for scalability and compliance, similar to the internet infrastructure boom of the late 1990s.