Goldman Sachs has debuted a Bitcoin (BTC) futures trading product for its client in collaboration with crypto investment giant Galaxy Digital. According to CNBC, the move marks the first time the Wall Street bank has partnered with a digital asset-based liquidity provider. Galaxy Digital co-president Damien Vanderwilt said the company offered a gateway to the crypto space allowing a tightly regulated entity like Goldman to offer crypto-related investment products. Goldman will reportedly be offering CME Group Bitcoin futures for its clients, marking another expansion of its recently established crypto trading desk. The move follows swiftly on the heels of an …

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) — Spain’s second-largest bank — is set to offer Bitcoin (BTC) trading and custody services in Switzerland. According to a release issued on Friday, BBVA Switzerland will begin Bitcoin trading for all private banking clients interested in crypto assets from June 21. This initial crypto trading service isonly for Bitcoin but the bank says it has plans to extend its offering to other cryptocurrencies. However, BBVA says its crypto trading desk will not include any digital asset investment advisory services. As part of the announcement, BBVA Switzerland revealed that the Bitcoin trading service will form …

Danske Bank, the largest bank in Denmark, laid out its official position on cryptocurrencies on June 17, when it published a four-point notice describing reasons to be careful when trading in digital assets. While the bank urged users to exercise caution, it stopped short of taking any practical stance against cryptocurrency. The bank stated that it won’t offer any cryptocurrency services to its customers itself, but also that it wouldn’t interfere with transactions coming from crypto platforms. “For customers that deposit funds that stem from investments in cryptocurrencies, we will treat them in the same way as deposits of funds …

Our Man in Shanghai has refused to let recent regulations slow down the news coming from China. Enterprise blockchain, central bank digital currencies and start up projects continue to make a positive impact in a region hoping to grow economic value through technology. Death march for El Salvador The debate around El Salvador continued this week as media and officials tried to digest the adoption of Bitcoin as a national currency. JPMorgan stated that there was little economic benefit, and John Hopkins University professor Steve Hanke warned that the move could “completely collapse the economy” of the small nation. The …

Blockchain intelligence platform TRM Labs has secured $14 million in Series A funding from venture funds across the crypto and technology sectors, sending a strong signal that major investors are backing digital-asset projects with ever-growing conviction. The venture capital arms of PayPal and Salesforce contributed to the raise, which was led by Bessemer Venture Partners, a VC with 130 IPOs under its belt. The full list of investors includes Initialized Capital, Jump Capital, Operator Partners, Blockchain Capital and executives from Google-parent Alphabet Inc. Ethan Kuzweil, a partner at Bessemer and new TRM board member, explained his firm’s rationale for leading …

Analysts at thAmerican multinational investment bank Morgan Stanley have estimated the likely changes in eurozone banks’ deposits should a digital euro be widely adopted. According to the analysts, a European Union central bank digital currency (CBDC) could suck up 8% of customer deposits from eurozone banks, Reuters reported Wednesday. This share may be far higher in smaller countries like Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Greece, they said. The analysts’ estimates were based on a “bear case” scenario in which all eurozone citizens over the age of 15 sent 3,000 euros ($3,637) into a digital euro wallet controlled by the …

A Russian State Duma member has blasted the central bank’s tough stance on the cryptocurrency industry for ignoring the growing demand for crypto in the country. Fedot Tumusov, a member of the “A Just Russia” party representing the Siberian region of Yakutsk, has criticized the Bank of Russia’s approach to regulating the crypto industry following a Tuesday plenary meeting of the State Duma. In a Tuesday Telegram post, Tumusov outlined the growing need to create an ecosystem that allows Russian residents to purchase cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) amid increasing demand. The official argued that despite Russia enforcing crypto legislation earlier …

United States investment bank Goldman Sachs is planning to offer Ether (ETH) derivatives products in the coming months, setting the stage for wider adoption of the second-largest cryptocurrency and marking a significant departure from the institution’s critical stance on digital assets in the past. Mathew McDermott, Goldman’s managing director of digital assets, confirmed Monday that the investment bank is expanding into Ether options and futures. In an interview with Bloomberg News, McDermott said institutional demand for cryptocurrencies will continue to grow despite the recent bout of market volatility: “Institutional adoption will continue. [...] Despite the material price correction, we continue …

New rules announced by South Korea’s Financial Services Commission, or FSC, are expected to affect around 60 unauthorized cryptocurrency exchanges in the country, and a new policy for banks will require that they classify any crypto exchange clients as “high risk.” According to the Korea Times, the new guidelines were announced on Sunday and are intended to ensure that crypto exchanges strengthen their monitoring of transactions and uphold strong user ID requirements. Until now, only the four largest exchanges in South Korea have set up real-name accounts that have been cleared by banks. The FSC is justifying its measures by …

A Texas state regulator has officially affirmed that Texas state-chartered banks are allowed to store cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) for their customers. The Texas Department of Banking, a state regulatory agency chartering state banks and supervising financial services, issued a notice on Thursday stating that local banks are permitted to provide crypto services in the state. The agency noted that Texas banks “may provide customers with virtual currency custody services, so long as the bank has adequate protocols in place to effectively manage the risks and comply with applicable law.” The regulator briefly explained cryptocurrencies, stressing that digital currencies do …

Multi-trillion dollar asset manager, State Street Corporation, has become the latest financial institution to announce the launch of a dedicated digital finance division. State Street, the second-oldest continually operating bank in the United States, announced the move on Thursday, June 10, highlighting the division’s focus on cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and tokenization. ”The financial industry is transforming to a digital economy, and we see digital assets as one of the most significant forces impacting our industry over the next five years,” asserted State Street CEO and chairman, Ron O’Hanley. He added: “Digital assets are quickly becoming …

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), a global committee of banking supervisors and central banks, has proposed new requirements for banks that want to hold cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC). In a consultation paper published Thursday, the committee provided preliminary proposals for the prudential treatment of crypto exposure by banks. The paper built on the contents of the committee’s 2019 discussion paper and responses received from various stakeholders and international industry figures. Crypto’s perceived volatility and potential for illicit use led the BCBS to assign a 1,250% risk weight to Bitcoin. This essentially means that banks must hold $1 …