Singapore’s DBS Bank announced that it will launch cryptocurrency services for customers this week, with industry professionals hailing it as a huge step for crypto adoption in Asia.
According to the South China Morning Post, DBS will become the world’s first cryptocurrency exchange backed by a traditional bank.
It will initially list Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP and Bitcoin Cash that can be traded against the Yen, US Singapore and Hong Kong dollars.
Gunnar Jaerv, COO of First Digital Trust, Hong Kong-based technology-driven financial institution, said: “This is huge news for the industry. The announcement that Singapore’s DBS Bank will launch crypto is a welcomed sign that regulators in the region are becoming comfortable with banks handling crypto and crypto-related trading.
DBS to launch digital exchange; crypto trading may start as early as next week https://t.co/NGP2VV7zTj
— The Straits Times (@straits_times) December 10, 2020
“This should be the first of many monumental shifts in crypto adoption in Asia. There are limitations, like trading hours due to fiat trading, but this is a big shift in bringing more legitimacy to the whole industry.
“It will signal to other regulators in the region that it is OK to accept crypto. We’ve had a lot of announcements coming out of the US: PayPal, Square and Kraken Bank to name a few. This will be the beginning of major developments here too.”
Cryptocurrency adoption among institutional investors has been key to Bitcoin’s growth in 2020, with the likes of Square and MicroStrategy investing $50 million and $475 million into the asset class respectively.
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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author should not be considered as financial advice. We do not give advice on financial products.