Blockchain intelligence firm CipherTrace has claimed that large banks may be processing up to $2 billion in undetected cryptocurrency-related transfers each year. In a press release shared with Cointelegraph on Dec. 16, CipherTrace claims that its research unit has found that every one of the United States’ top 10 commercial banks have unregistered cryptocurrency businesses using their payments networks to process funds. These unregistered cryptocurrency money service businesses (MSBs) include entities such as crypto exchanges, according to the research. Known unknowns While both the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act and Financial Action Task Force (FATF) funds Travel Rules require banks to …

The government of cryptocurrency-friendly Switzerland has shot down the idea of issuing a digital Swiss franc, for now. According to a Dec. 13 press release published on the Federal Council’s website, the Federal Council approved a report exploring the opportunities and risks of issuing a digital form of the country’s national currency, the franc. Following an analysis, the Federal Council concluded that a central bank digital currency (CBDC) cannot meet expectations for payment efficiency, effective monetary policy, and a more stable financial system. The council said: “Universally accessible central bank digital currency would bring no additional benefits for Switzerland at …

Cryptocurrency lending firm BlockFi announced in an email that it obtained a money transmitter license (MTL) in the state of Washington in the United States. The firm explained that the license will allow BlockFi to be the first crypto company eligible to offer interest-bearing crypto accounts to Washington state residents. Furthermore, Washington residents will also have access to the firm’s trading service. The trading platform was announced by the firm last week. At the time the firm also noted that it was pursuing licenses to offer the service as broadly as possible: “As part of the preparation for the trading …

The president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, said that the financial institution should be ahead of the curve regarding the demand for stablecoins. According to a tweet by the ECB on Dec. 12, Lagarde said: “My personal conviction on the issue of stable coins is that we better be ahead of the curve. There is clearly demand out there that we have to respond to.” Stablecoins are digital currencies pegged to a physical asset or fiat currency and designed to minimize price volatility. Focus on prompt adaption to fintech innovations In early September, when Lagarde was still …

The International Blockchain Monetary Reserve (IBMR) and blockchain firm Algorand are jointly launching a microfinance platform and a dedicated token to promote financial inclusion in Southeast Asia. Per a press release shared with Cointelegraph on Dec. 12, the partnership between the two entities aims to develop and launch a microfinance ecosystem based on Algorand’s blockchain technology in a bid to boost the financial inclusion of the urban working poor in the region. Within the initiative, the parties will also introduce a dedicated token dubbed the Asia Reserve Currency Coin (ARCC). Not to provide free spending money ARCC is designed to …

Amsterdam-based bank ING is reportedly developing cryptocurrency custody technology, Reuters reported on Dec. 12. The digital assets custody service being developed by ING is purportedly part of one of the bank’s several blockchain-related initiatives and is still at an early stage of development. ING reportedly said that it “sees increasing opportunities with regard to digital assets on both asset backed and native security tokens.” When reached for comment, ING did not provide specific details about the project, but said that it is, “particularly active to further develop the technology behind digital assets to empower its clients with a compliant access …

Switzerland-based cryptocurrency bank SEBA has expanded its services to nine new countries. According to Finance Magnates on Dec. 12, SEBA revealed that accounts are now fully operational for institutional clients and accredited investors in Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, France, Austria, Portugal. As previously reported, SEBA Bank AG (formerly SEBA Crypto AG) is a fully-regulated institution, having secured a banking and securities dealer license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) in August 2019. Extensive crypto banking services As part of its account services, SEBA offers a SEBAwallet app, e-banking services and SEBA card facilities, with …

Berlin-based fintech company solarisBank has established a subsidiary to provide a custody solution for digital assets. Per a Dec. 11 announcement, solarisBank’s newly established subsidiary, solaris Digital Assets GmbH, will provide clients with an application programming interface (API)-accessible platform, which gives access to the full range of solarisBank’s digital white-label banking services. No need to apply for a license The announcement further reads that solaris Digital Assets will operate in compliance with the regulatory requirements of the German market, as well as ensure storage of digital assets that is compliant. This, according to the company, will release clients from the …

London-based cryptocurrency compliance firm Elliptic has launched a new tool that allows banks to work more closely with crypto exchanges. Dubbed Elliptic Discovery, the product collects detailed profiles of more than 200 global crypto exchanges to enable banks to manage risks associated with crypto transactions, Business Insider reports Dec. 11. Elliptic Discovery includes data collected since 2013 Designed specifically for banks, Elliptic Discovery reportedly provides compliance teams with necessary insights to identify flows of funds on crypto assets and assess risks including money laundering. The tool is reportedly based on Elliptic's data that was collected since 2013 and offers a …

The Bank of Lithuania said that central banks’ “parental controls” are obsolete when it comes to crypto assets, but that should not prevent them from entering the space in order to understand it. In an analysis dedicated to central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) released on Dec. 10, the Bank of Lithuania argued that banks should participate in the digital asset space in order to gain experience with the rapidly developing asset class. Bank board member Marius Jurgilas said in an accompanying statement: “It is fascinating to follow how fast the area of digital assets and currencies is evolving. It is …

China Construction Bank (CCB), the world’s second-biggest bank by operated assets, has officially launched its blockchain-based refactoring platform. Targeting commercial factoring business, CCB aims to bolster operations and reduce major risks in its refactoring business while providing shared data access by multiple participants, Chinese news outlet Sina Tech reports Dec. 6. As reported, factoring firms represent third parties that buy businesses’ invoices at a discount in order to help those businesses raise funds. CCB’s blockchain trading platform reached $50 billion in cumulative volume in October The news comes after CCB officially released the second version of its blockchain trading platform …

Spain’s multinational banking giant Banco Santander has just redeemed a $20 million bond using the Ethereum blockchain. The firm has performed an early repayment of the blockchain-based bond that was issued on Sept.10, 2019, which purportedly shows that the public Ethereum blockchain can be applied to securities issuance across the full lifecycle of a security. “Debt security can be managed through its full lifecycle on a blockchain” John Whelan, head of Digital Investment Banking at Santander, tweeted on Dec. 10: “We just performed an early redemption of our blockchain-based bond that we issued on September 10th, 2019. This unequivocally proves …