Citigroup Inc has become the latest Wall Street giant to show interest in cryptocurrencies as it is considering launching several digital asset-related services for its client base, according to a report by the Financial Times.
The investment bank is planning to introduce cryptocurrency trading, custody and financing services, Citi’s Global Head of foreign exchange, Itay Tuchman, revealed. The bank’s interest in digital currency services was pushed by the ‘very rapid’ accumulation of interests in Bitcoin within a broad spectrum of its large clients.
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“There are different options from our perspective, and we are considering where we can best serve clients. This is not going to be a prop-trading effort,” said Tuchman, meaning the bank will not trade crypto with its own funds.
Banks Want a Piece of Crypto
Earlier, Citi published a report mentioning that Bitcoin has the capability of becoming an international trade currency but did not have any official plans to launch crypto-based services.
Further, Tuchman elaborated that Citi will not rush with its decision to enter into the crypto space.
“I don’t have any FOMO because I believe that crypto is here to stay and that we are just at the very beginning of the market,” he said. “This isn’t a space race. There is room for more than just one flag,” he added.
While Citi is still evaluating its crypto plans, many of its industry peers are already offering crypto investment opportunities mostly to wealthy clients. Most recently, Goldman Sachs, which resumed its crypto trading desks in March, started to offer Bitcoin derivatives. Morgan Stanley, BNY Mellon and Deutsche Bank are only a few big banking names that are offering crypto services.
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