One of the ANZ bank’s senior executives has told a Blockchain Australia forum that the crypto sector has grown too big to be ignored by traditional finance. The comments came a day after rival Commonwealth Bank announced that it would roll out crypto trading services for 10 digital assets via its Commbank app. The “State of Play” forum was held by Blockchain Australia on Nov. 4 and featured representatives from organizations including Mastercard, ANZ and NAB offering their take on the crypto sector in the wake of CBA’s play. Today we hosted the 'State of Play' with over 1200 registrations …

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) is set to launch crypto trading services for the 6.5 million users of its CommBank app. The CBA will become the first bank in Australia to support crypto, and Blockchain Australia says it is “inevitable” that the other ‘big four’ banks including National Australia Bank (NAB), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) and Westpac will soon follow suit. According to a Nov. 3 announcement, the CBA has partnered with the Gemini crypto exchange and blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis to launch its crypto services. The bank will launch a pilot for a limited number …

Thailand’s oldest bank plans to become the majority shareholder of one the largest crypto exchanges in the country after a $536.7 million purchase. According to a Nov. 2 announcement, Siam Commercial Bank’s SCB X Group is expected to buy a 51% stake in Thailand-based crypto exchange Bitkub for 17.85 billion baht, or roughly $536.7 million, by the second quarter of 2022. The exchange said the deal is subject to approval from the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, and the country’s central bank. Arthit Nanthawittaya, CEO of Siam Commercial Bank, said the acquisition was based on the growth of …

Top U.S.-based banks and financial institutions have filled more than 1,000 positions for crypto experts in the past three years. According to a Nov. 1 report from Bloomberg, financial institutions are offering significant bonuses to attract crypto talent, with human resource consultant Johnson Associates estimating that crypto positions pay salaries that are between 20% and 30% higher than comparable positions not related to digital currency. The firm added that many senior crypto roles benefit an up to 50% bump in salary over comparable positions, with managing director Alan Johnson concluding: “The banks can’t run the risk that their clients go …

Tinkoff Investments, the online brokerage of major Russian private bank Tinkoff, is researching cryptocurrency investment services despite the Bank of Russia withholding the bank from launching such tools. Tinkoff Investments head Dmitry Panchenko claimed that the bank’s brokerage portal is considering projects related to cryptocurrency investment but it’s too early to discuss specific ideas. The company is now working on research and development initiatives targeting a range of crypto-related services, Panchenko said in an Oct. 28 interview with local news agency TASS. Tinkoff Investments is specifically looking at crypto products by companies like international payment giant PayPal, as well as …

During an earnings call with investors and stakeholders, Michael Miebach, CEO of Mastercard, discussed his positive outlook on the cryptocurrency industry. The company had seen sizable volume growth in consumers using their Mastercards to purchase crypto and secured several partnerships with cryptocurrency firms. But Miebach's most ambitious viewpoint comes from a discussion regarding central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, saying: "We are saying at this point in time, the most likely chance for this kind of technology to work for payments is if it's issued through a government in the form of a CBDC. We said that on a couple …

The Hedera Governing Council has welcomed Singapore's oldest bank, DBS Bank, as its newest member, becoming the first Southeast Asian lender to join the worldwide Hyperledger organization. DBS Bank, a member of the Advisory Council on Fintech, has joined the blockchain council alongside 39 other major technology, corporate and non-profit leaders including Google, IBM, Boeing, Deutsche Telekom, University of London, Dentons and LG Electronics, among others. The Asian lender may acquire value from Hadera's innovative enterprise blockchain platform while also influencing it by providing input on real-world business needs. Council members are allotted three years to serve, extendible for two …

Jelena McWilliams, the chairperson of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, has said the agency is working with other regulators in the United States to explore “under what circumstances banks can engage in activities involving crypto assets.” In a speech at the Money20/20 fintech conference on Oct. 25, McWilliams said the FDIC, in coordination with the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, is looking to provide regulatory clarity for banks handling crypto assets including stablecoins. The chairperson said the FDIC planned to issue “a series of policy statements” in the coming months on guidance …

The central bank of Spain is introducing new registration guidelines for local virtual currency service providers, or VASPs, including banking institutions. The Bank of Spain has issued instructions on VASP registration for Anti-Money Laundering, or AML, purposes, requiring institutions to submit their registration requests through an electronic registry, Cointelegraph en Español reported Oct. 25. Issuing the guidelines on Oct. 19, the Spanish central bank noted that the obligation to sign up in the registry applies to “all individuals and institutions providing virtual currency exchange services” like cryptocurrency trading and custody services. The regulator stressed that VASPs will have to register …

Major credit card company Mastercard has announced it is preparing to integrate cryptocurrencies into its loyalty program offerings for United States-based banks, merchants and fintech firms on its payment network. In a Monday announcement, Mastercard said it would be working with digital asset platform Bakkt to allow its customers based in the United States to buy, sell and hold digital assets through custodial wallets. The partnership will also enable cardholders to earn and spend rewards in crypto rather than using loyalty points and accruing or redeeming tokens for purchases. “We’ll not only empower our partners to offer a dynamic mix …

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari is set to officially introduce the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eNaira. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has published a document in which it reaffirmed its intention to introduce the eNaira after previously attempting but failing to do so on Oct. 1. According to the design paper for the eNaira, the CBN now considers itself prepared to implement Nigeria’s CBDC. The CBN is working on a global cryptocurrency that will be used as a means of payment and a store of value in addition to replacing cash. The CBN, in its own statement, …

The central bank of France continues actively exploring a central bank digital currency (CBDC), completing a significant trial of a blockchain-based CBDC in the country’s debt market. Over 500 institutions in France have participated in a 10-month experiment testing a CBDC issued by Banque de France for government bond deals, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. The CBDC trial was led by Belgium-based financial services firm Euroclear and used a system developed by American technology giant IBM. The CBDC test also involved the French public debt office alongside the central bank and a consortium of major financial companies operating in …