Latest news about Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies. Your daily crypto news habit.
Institutions on the fence about crypto involvement may no longer fear legal uncertainty, given recent crypto custody regulatory clarity.
Recent regulatory transparency provided by U.S. banking regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, or OCC, may give interested institutions the confidence to enter the crypto industry.
âFor those of us who have been building up this ecosystem for years, itâs hugely validating of those efforts,â Diogo Monica, president of crypto custody service Anchorage, told Cointelegraph on July 23, referring to the OCCâs actions.
He added:
âBut the real significance here is for the kinds of institutional players who may have been sitting on the sidelines in the absence of clear regulatory guidance. The OCC coming out and saying that more traditional financial institutions can custody crypto effectively erases that concern.â
The OCCâs move is a victory for the crypto industry
On July 22, the OCC proclaimed digital asset custody by federally chartered U.S. banks as permissible activity. The move provided transparency without changing any current guidelines, Morgan Creek Digital co-founder Anthony Pompliano said in a recent YouTube video.
âYesterdayâs OCC letter is a huge win for crypto,â Monica said. âNot only does it bring much needed regulatory clarity to the digital asset space in the United States, it also signals to skeptics and the wider market that this asset class is here to stay.â
More banks may enter the industry
Will all banks offer crypto custody in the future? âItâs not so much a question of if they will as how they will,â said Monica. Holding digital assets for customers currently requires specific technical tools and prowess â something banks may not house at present, he explained. Blockchain activity and interaction, such as staking, also brings further complications and requirements.
âParticularly when those actions are yield-generating, it will be imperative for fiduciary banks to support them through partnerships or sub-custodian relationships with a financial services platform like Anchorage,â he added.
An up and coming crypto custody outfit, Anchorage garnered $40 million from a number of companies, including Visa, announced in mid-2019. The startup has since posted a number of new developments.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of Bitcoin Insider. Every investment and trading move involves risk - this is especially true for cryptocurrencies given their volatility. We strongly advise our readers to conduct their own research when making a decision.