The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) intends to launch cryptocurrency trading services for 6.5 million users of the CommBank app.
The CBA will be the first bank in Australia to support a cryptocurrency, and Blockchain Australia has said it has no exit from other Big Four banks, including the National Australia Bank (NAB), the Australian and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ). and Westpac will soon follow.
According to an announcement on Wednesday, CBA has entered into a partnership with the crypto and blockchain analysis company Gemini, Chainalysis, to launch its own crypto services. The bank will launch a beta version for a limited number of customers in the coming weeks, before rolling out the entire service in 2022.
The banking app will support ten cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC) named so far.
Steve Fallas, CEO of Blockchain Australia, told Cointelegraph that the move was “extremely important” as the four major Australian banks “maintain our national and international reputation as a financial services provider”.
“The confidence that this gives local players in the digital asset sector will be diminished by the effect this signal is sending around the world that Australia should be the destination for cryptocurrencies and digital assets.”
Fallas believes that the rapid growth and spread of cryptocurrencies “shifted the risk of being ahead of the curve” in the eyes of large banks to the risk of “negotiation” and being left behind. Fallas believes that the launch of their own crypto services by other major Australian banks is only a matter of time.
Other banks will inevitably follow suit. Clarity in the national regulatory landscape becomes clearer when industry and authorities tackle problems such as licensing. He said barriers to action and participation were removed.
Caroline Bowler, CEO of the local cryptocurrency exchange BTC Markets, reiterated Walla’s view, noting that “with the imminent regulation and approval of the country’s largest bank, the gate is now open for more appetite from traditional finance”.
“The CBA movement is exciting and inevitable. This is another red day for cryptocurrencies, and it looks like Australia is in a sudden recession. All this time we have been described as “acquisition”, but now we occupy the leading position in the world with our largest bank. “…
Dave Abner, Global Head of Business Development at Gemini, said his company is “proud” of working with the CBA to launch the world’s leading crypto services.
“The explosive growth of digital assets internationally, combined with Gemini’s institutional security and proactive regulatory approach, sets this partnership to set a new standard for banks and financial platforms in Australia and around the world,” he said.
Not everyone was happy with the CBA collaboration, but Adrian Přelozny, CEO of the Australian cryptocurrency exchange Independent Reserve, expressed concern about the bank’s partnership with an offshore company.
“It is disappointing that the CBA went with a foreign player and did not interact with local players at all. Now we want to communicate with other Australian banks,” said Brzhozny.
RELATED: Australian Senators Push the Country to Become the Next Crypto Node
On October 15, the Cointelegraph reported that Canberra-based bitcoin (BTC) trader Alan Flynn has settled his first complaint in the ACT Civil and Administrative Court against ANZ for canceling his bank accounts in 2018 and 2019 due to his work as a digital currency. . Exchange.
While ANZ has denied any responsibility, the bank offered it the opportunity to apply for a bank account again, indicating that the bank is more open to cryptocurrency than two to three years ago. Flynn also has a similar case against Westpac that is still ongoing.
Flynn commented on the news on Wednesday and told the Cointelegraph that the crypto landscape in Australia is changing rapidly:
“A lot of things are happening all of a sudden in the Australian bitcoin space; you have a request from the Senate, ANZ’s recognition of a legitimate human rights issue to be answered in my complaint, and AUSTRAC’s cancellation statement from the bank last Friday, and now CBA’s digital currency plans are revealed.”
