Canada’s largest bank, the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), is reportedly looking to venture into the highly volatile and controversial (at least in the banking community) crypto market, according to a report by the Logic. Besides being the biggest bank in Canada, accruing more than $965 billion in total assets, the RBC was notorious at a time for its anti-crypto stance.
Thanks to the controversial nature of the crypto ecosystem, it is not unusual to see big and small merchants running away from anything related to crypto. Even worse, the Canadian crypto community has been in the news for a ton of fraudulent activities associated with virtual currencies. So, it didn’t come as much of a shock when RBC has issued a warning against using its credit card for any crypto-related transaction.
Oh well, I am not sure how long that would hold, as the largely celebrated bank is now flirting with the idea of owning and managing a crypto platform.
While we are yet to gather much info on the crypto project, we do know that the major financial institution has filed several patents to both US and Canada’s authorities. Recent report says RBC filed four patents in the US and Canada. A closer research shows that the revered bank has published about 27 blockchain-related patents since 2016.
When asked why the sudden twist in approach to crypto, a spokesperson for the bank diplomatically replied that the RBC “like many other organizations, files patent applications to ensure proprietary ideas and concepts are protected.”
The patents perhaps give a better answer, as one of them stating:
“[T]o individual users, managing cryptographic keys and transacting with different cryptographic assets can be a challenge. In some situations, cryptographic asset transactions may take time to be confirmed, and/or may not be compatible or supported by merchant systems or point-of-sale devices.”
Our best guess is that the bank is ready to make a shift from serving just investments based on fiat currency. Having a crypto platform gives it the opportunity to serve clients who are willing to make purchases in stores and online stores that enable cryptocurrency payments too.
As the the Logic rightly puts it,
“[T]he trading platform would facilitate buying and selling of individual digital coins, including Bitcoin(BTC)trade and Ethereum (ETH)trade, as well as the transfer of funds combining different types of cryptocurrencies.”
With fewer crypto exchanges currently lining the Canadian crypto industry since the demise of the crypto exchanges QuadrigaCX and Einstein, I am positive this will make a huge difference once fully accomplished. I look forward to updating you as the cryptocurrency project unfolds. Stay tuned!
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