Report: Dutch Bank Rabobank Cancels Development of ‘Rabobit’ Crypto Wallet

Dutch bank Rabobank has reportedly canceled its plans to develop a cryptocurrency wallet, technology news outlet The Next Web states on May 23.

As Cointelegraph reported, the bank had announced a cryptocurrency wallet service dubbed “Rabobit” as a part of the Rabobank Moonshot fintech innovation program in February last year. Still, a spokesperson of the bank reportedly told the outlet that:

“After careful consideration with our customers in mind we recently decided that now is not the time to develop the idea further and bring it to the next phase of innovation.”

The Rabobank representative also reportedly stated that the development process has helped the bank learn “valuable lessons about our customers and the crypto market and on how to design blockchain and crypto applications.” The bank allegedly cited unsuitable regulatory conditions as the reason why it decided not to pursue the initiative any further. The spokesperson pointed out:

“For instance, Dutch authorities, AFM (market conduct supervision) and DNB (Dutch central bank, financial stability) recommend regulations of cryptos at an international level.”

Lastly, the Rabobank representative noted that the institution “will keep an eye on the market and regulatory developments within the industry.” Crunchbase estimates Rabobank to have $10.6 billion in annual revenue.

Rabobank did not answer Cointelegraph’s inquiry as to their cryptocurrency wallet plans by press time.

As Cointelegraph reported earlier this week, another Dutch bank ABN AMRO abandoned its plans to launch a custodial bitcoin (BTC) wallet dubbed “Wallie” because of risk concerns.

Also this week, a group of four banks successfully issued a promissory note — a type of legally binding loan agreement — through a new blockchain platform.