European regulator: CASPs should work on protocol interoperability, self-hosted wallets

November 24, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Banks

The proposed new industry guidelines are intended to address issues around AML and CFT rules.

The European Union’s banking regulator, the European Banking Authority (EBA), wants to update existing Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) rules for crypto providers.

In a consultation paper published on Nov. 24, the EBA explains that current European regulations are no longer sufficient to govern AML/CFT standards compliance among crypto providers. The proposed new industry guidelines are intended to address these issues, and the EBA has given interested parties until Feb. 26, 2024, to comment.

In particular, the EBA suggests merging the AML/CFT criteria for payment service providers and crypto asset service providers (CASPs). It also proposes obliging CASPs to “enable the transmission of information in a seamless and interoperable manner” by enhancing the interoperability of their protocols.

Under the proposed new rules, CASPs will also be required to obtain and hold information on self-hosted addresses, ensure that the transfer of crypto assets can be individually identified, and verify whether that address is owned or controlled by the CASP customer. These requirements would be enforced when the transfer amount of the self-hosted account is above the 1,000 euro mark, although the EBA doesn’t specify whether this is a monthly, daily or a single-time threshold.

After the consultation process, the new guidelines should come into force on Dec. 30, 2024.

In October, the EBA released a consultation paper assessing the suitability of management body members and shareholders or members holding qualifying stakes in issuers of asset-referenced tokens and CASPs.

In July, the EBA encouraged stablecoin issuers to voluntarily adhere to specific “guiding principles” related to risk management and consumer protection.

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Raiffeisenlandesbank to launch Bitcoin trading in early 2024

November 24, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Austria

Raiffeisen Bank’s RLB NÖ-Wien is preparing to introduce cryptocurrency trading services to its retail clients in early 2024.

The Austrian subsidiary of European lender Raiffeisen Bank is preparing to allow its clients to trade cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) in the coming months.

After initially announcing its crypto plans in April 2023, Raiffeisen Bank’s Raiffeisenlandesbank Niederösterreich-Wien (RLB NÖ-Wien) is moving forward with a crypto rollout in collaboration with the Austrian crypto firm Bitpanda.

RLB NÖ-Wien expects to start rolling out crypto trading services in Vienna in the first quarter of 2024, a spokesperson for the bank told Cointelegraph.

“Raiffeisenlandesbank NÖ-Wien has signed a cooperation agreement with Bitpanda. Via this cooperation, we plan to offer an attractive digital investment platform early in 2024,” the representative stated, adding:

“We have seen the demand from customers for easy, intuitive, digital investment platforms. Our main intention to take customer-centric decisions has triggered these efforts, which we are excited about bringing to market.”

With the crypto rollout, RLB NÖ-Wien users will gain access to all cryptocurrencies provided by the bank’s partner Bitpanda, the spokesperson said.

Bitpanda Deputy CEO Lukas Enzersdorfer-Konrad previously told Cointelegraph that Raiffeisen’s crypto offering would support the full range of Bitpanda’s digital asset offerings, which feature more than 2,500 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ether (ETH). The exec also said Raiffeisen was willing to make the crypto trading service available to all customer segments, including retail, private banking and corporate customers.

“As we announced in April, the end goal is to make our offer available to all RLB NÖ-Wien customers. However, the rollout will begin with their customers in Vienna,” a spokesperson for Bitpanda noted.

Raiffeisen’s move into crypto is another sign of Bitcoin’s growing adoption, with companies like Ferrari starting to accept cryptocurrency as payment in October 2023. Raiffeisen Bank is one of the oldest banks in Europe, with the first Raiffeisen bank launching in Austria’s Mühldorf in 1886. As of 30 June 2023, the Raiffeisen Group had 247 billion Swiss francs ($280 billion) in assets under management and 219 billion CHF ($248 billion) in client loans.

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Canadian regulator seeks feedback on crypto asset exposure disclosure requirements

November 20, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Banking

The Canadian Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions is following a Basel model for its disclosure requirements.

Canada’s Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) has opened a consultation period on crypto asset disclosure requirements for federally regulated financial institutions (FRFIs). The consultation was foreseen in the 2023 federal budget, but its timing is tied to a similar enquiry initiated by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).

The Canadian government stated in March that it would draw up crypto exposure guidelines for banks “to help protect Canadians' savings and the security of our financial sector.” The provision is found in section 5.4 of the budget, titled “Combatting Financial Crime.” The budget also stated that federally regulated pension funds will be required to disclose their crypto exposure to the OSFI — no consultation is required.

[Have your say]
We’re gathering input on public disclosure of #crypto-asset exposures by banks and insurers in #Canada.

For more details and to share your feedback, visit: https://t.co/ldCdzW56PP pic.twitter.com/7O4ECxAEle
— Superintendent of Financial Institutions (@OSFICanada) November 20, 2023

Canadian pension funds had a painful experience with crypto in 2022. The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Canada’s second-largest pension fund, lost CA$200 million ($154.7 million) in the Celsius bankruptcy. The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan wrote off $95 million in FTX and FTX.US investment in November 2022 and stated in April that it was swearing off crypto for good. CPP Investments, Canada’s largest pension fund, canceled all crypto research in December.

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) announced its consultation on banks’ crypto asset exposure in October. Commenters can “provide feedback on BCBS proposals, ensuring guidelines align with the Canadian context,” the OSFI said. In its consultation, the OSFI specifically asks for commenters to appraise and enhance the BCBS disclosure framework. Responses are due by January 31, 2024.

The OSFI concluded a consultation on liquidity requirements for banks with crypto assets in September. It too was coordinated with a BIS consultation.

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Santander offers Bitcoin, ETH trading for Swiss account holders: Report

November 20, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Banking

High-net-worth individuals of Santander Private Banking International will have access to trade BTC and ETH, according to a report claiming access to a leaked internal communication.

The international arm of Spanish lender Banco Santander has reportedly rolled out a new service, allowing clients with Swiss accounts to invest in and trade Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).

According to a report from Coindesk claiming access to a leaked internal communication, high-net-worth individuals of Santander Private Banking International will have access to trade BTC and ETH. Cointelegraph could not independently verify the development as Santander did not immediately respond to requests for comments at the time of writing.

While Santander’s rollout of the new crypto trading services will reportedly start with BTC and ETH only, the banking giant will introduce other cryptocurrencies following the clearance of its screening criteria.

According to the report, Santander launched BTC and ETH trading services upon request from clients through relationship managers. The bank will hold the private cryptographic keys of the tradable assets in a regulated custody model.

Commerzbank recently became the first “full-service” German bank to be granted a crypto custody license in the country under the legal framework of the German Banking Act.

The license allows the bank to offer custody of crypto assets and “further digital asset services” in the future.

“This highlights our ongoing commitment to applying the latest technologies and innovations, and it forms the foundation for supporting our customers in the areas of digital assets,” stated Jörg Oliveri del Castillo-Schulz, chief operating officer of Commerzbank.

The bank initially plans to establish a platform that is both “secure and reliable” and fully complies with local regulations.

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Goldman Sachs leads $95M funding round for blockchain payment firm Fnality — Report

November 14, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Goldman Sachs leads M funding round for blockchain payment firm Fnality — Report

Banks

With $158 million of total capital raised since 2019, Fnality plans to launch the Sterling Fnality Payment System in 2023, subject to approval by the Bank of England.

Global investment bank Goldman Sachs and French universal bank BNP Paribas have reportedly led a new funding round for Fnality, a blockchain-based wholesale payments firm backed by Nomura Group.

Fnality has raised 77.7 million British pounds ($95.09 million) in a second round of funding, Reuters reported on Nov. 13. In addition to Goldman and BNP Paribas, the fund raise involved participation by settlement houses like Euroclear and Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation. Other investors included the global exchange-traded fund firm WisdomTree and Fnality’s existing investor Nomura.

There was also additional investment from initial round backers Banco Santander, BNY Mellon, Barclays, CIBC, Commerzbank, ING, Lloyds Banking Group, Nasdaq Ventures, State Street, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and UBS. As previously reported, UBS and other global banks invested 55 million pounds ($63.2 million) in Fnality in June 2019, aiming to launch a blockchain-based trade settlement platform.

The new capital will be used for setting up a round-the-clock global liquidity management network for new digital payment models in wholesale financial markets and emerging tokenized asset markets, Fnality reportedly said. The raise also lays the basis for the commencement of the initial launch of the Sterling Fnality Payment System in 2023, subject to approval by the Bank of England.

Fnality’s blockchain tech application allows institutions to use central banks funds across numerous potential use cases, Goldman’s global head of digital assets, Mathew McDermott, said. Those include “instantaneous, cross-border, cross-currency payments, collateral mobility and security transactions,” he noted.

Fnality was founded in 2019 as a UBS-led blockchain project aiming to build digital versions of major currencies for wholesale payments and transactions involving digital securities. The firm was specifically initially launched under the Utility Settlement Coin, or USC, project, designed to tokenize fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar or the euro on an Ethereum-based blockchain.

Other global banks like the multinational banking firm JPMorgan have been actively exploring blockchain and tokenization as well. In early November, JPMorgan launched a new programmable payment feature on its JPM Coin platform, targeting institutional investors.

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