- Garanti BBVA Kripto, part of Spain’s BBVA, will soon offer public crypto trading services.
- Over 50 European banks are set to launch crypto services in early 2025.
- MiCA regulation and the success of U.S. Bitcoin ETFs drive banks’ digital currency enthusiasm.
According to the reports, Garanti BBVA Kripto, a Turkish crypto custody platform under BBVA, Spain’s second-largest bank, is expanding its services to include digital currency trading. This move comes after the full implementation of the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which officially took effect on December 30, 2024.
As MiCA brings regulatory clarity, it has paved the way for financial institutions across Europe to embrace crypto services, with many expected to launch by the first quarter of 2025.
BBVA Strengthens Crypto Commitment
The $857 billion banking giant BBVA is doubling down in the digital currency space in 2023. Garanti BBVA Kripto, operated by Turkey’s fifth-largest bank, had already been piloting digital currency trading services. As of January 2024, its platform was advertising the service, though at one point, it was unavailable to the general public.
Now that MiCA has emerged, Garanti BBVA Kripto will broaden the number of crypto traders, having open doors with them very soon. The on-market execution of the trading capability of the platform has roped in a leading Spanish crypto exchange, Bit2Me, which is quite intense on its way to mainstream digital currencies.
European Banks Set to Follow Suit
The deal is part of a string that has swept Europe. Bit2Me’s Chief Sales Officer, Abel Peña, expects many European banks to provide crypto spot trading services by 2025. Over 50 financial institutions, with which the company is already in close contact, are likely to offer such digital currency services at the beginning of next year.
The MiCA regulatory certainty, plus the success of the U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs, have combined to fire up enthusiasm for digital currency among banks. According to Peña, banks can’t ignore the increasing demand for Bitcoin and other digial currencies as an asset class anymore.
By doing so, BBVA is following in the footsteps of the big European financial names, such as Deutsche Bank and Société Générale, which have been making steps toward integrating digital currency services. As European banks further open their arms to digital assets, the crypto landscape will look very different, and that sooner rather than later, with Garanti BBVA Kripto at the forefront.
