Itau Unibanco To Invest In Cryptocurrency, Launches ETH, BTC Trading

Itau Unibanco

One of Brazil’s biggest banks, Itau Unibanco, has announced the opening of Bitcoin and Ether trading services. Itau Unibanco’s entry into the cryptocurrency market is notable for its dedication to both enabling trading and offering protection for users’ digital assets.

Itau’s all-encompassing strategy distinguishes it from some rivals that might only concentrate on trading services, underscoring the bank’s dedication to providing a safe and general experience for cryptocurrency users. Recent findings, as published on Cointelegraph, revealed that Brazil has witnessed a rise in interest in and adoption of digital assets due to its thriving and developing cryptocurrency market.

Itau’s calculated move into this market places the bank in a position to meet its clients’ changing financial needs. Itau has been part of the LIFT Lab that is working with other technological companies to come up with Brazil’s first stablecoin.

XP And J&F Considers Exiting Cryptocurrency Market, Santander Brasil Warms-up

Prominent brokerage firm XP and J&F conglomerate member PicPay have decided to exit the cryptocurrency market. PicPay specifically blamed its demise on the unpredictability of cryptocurrency regulations.

Helen Partz from Cointelegraph stated that this recent development demonstrates the difficulties businesses encounter when navigating Brazil’s regulatory environment, where the framework governing cryptocurrencies is still developing. Santander Brasil and BTG Pactual are warming up to add resources in readiness for the national launch of the latest digital product, Drex.

News has it that Itau, this year, launched a digital assets custody firm, with Itaú’s Head Of Digital Assets Advice revealing that 85% of its customers are interested in storing their cryptocurrency assets with a bank. Investigation into the trend says that it has been over a month since Santander Brasil and BTG Pactual announced that they would be exiting the cryptocurrency industry.

A report from Reuters on December 4th report says that XP Investimentos (the investment and brokerage company) announced that it would be shutting down its cryptocurrency service section. PicPay, the financial service company and a subsidiary of J&F,  which also owns JBS, has previously given its reason for closing its cryptocurrency service to be boarded around regulatory uncertainties.

Itaú Head Of Digital Assets Advises Customers Explains New Service

The move by Itau Unibanco to introduce trading services for Bitcoin and Ether in Brazil is indicative of a progressive attitude among established financial institutions. By providing services for protecting digital assets, the move not only meets the growing demand for cryptocurrencies in Brazil but also establishes Itau as a full-service provider.

According to Guto Antunes, the head of digital assets at Itaú, while responding to questions about the bank’s latest development, revealed that the bank is working on adding more cryptocurrency-related products to its list in the future.

According to Antunes, Itaú Bank is looking to serve its customers a cryptocurrency custodian product through its cryptocurrency trading services. He also made it clear that customers will not be able to deposit or withdraw their cryptocurrency assets using their external cryptocurrency wallets initially.

Antunes stated that the most important thing is for every customer to keep their money in their bank accounts as a way of guaranteeing the security of Itau’s balance sheet. Antunes threw more light on Itaú’s plans to attract more customers to the bank through its Bitcoin services. He said that the bank exists in a time where customers bank in a tokenized method.