Sept 21 (Reuters) - Australia's corporate regulator said on Thursday it had initiated civil proceedings against Bit Trade Pty Ltd, provider of the Kraken crypto exchange to Australian customers, for failing to comply with design and distribution obligations for its margin trading product. The design and distribution obligations (DDO) require firms to design financial products that meet the needs of consumers and distribute them in a targeted manner. Bit Trade's margin trading product is a credit facility as it provides customers credit to buy and sell certain crypto assets on the Kraken exchange, ASIC said. It said at least 1,160 customers had used the margin trading product, incurring a total loss of about A$12.95 million ($8.35 million) since DDO began in October 2021. ($1 = 1.5516 Australian dollars)Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja DesaiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Persons: DDO, Sarah Court, Himanshi, Pooja Desai Organizations: Bit Trade, Ltd, Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru