Banks in Spain are reportedly preparing to offer crypto services to their customers.
According to the Spanish newspaper El Pais, banks in Spain are preparing to offer crypto-asset services. The Bank of Spain said last June that it would instruct entities wishing to sign up to provide crypto-asset services. The relevant department will be operational as of October 29, but banks are still waiting for the central bank’s instruction.
There is uncertainty as to whether the flat is intended for financial institutions, which are currently regulated entities. But Gloria Hernández Aler, partner at regulatory advisory firm finReg, says it wouldn’t make sense for a bank to meet its imposed requirements as these entities are already directly audited. Aler, on the other hand, points out that this agency, which mainly aims at money laundering, makes sense for them to announce that they will provide such a service and will likely need to change their money laundering policies to adapt to the dynamics of crypto assets.
The news also includes statements that the compliance departments of some major financial institutions have begun investigating whether they should register to offer crypto services.