Swiss Government-Owned Bank PostFinance to Offer Customers Crypto – Switzerland’s fifth-largest financial services company, PostFinance, has announced that it will collaborate with regulated digital asset services provider Sygnum Bank to grant its users access to cryptocurrency.
Owned entirely by the Swiss government, PostFinance will initially offer its 2.5 million customers the ability to purchase, store, and sell major cryptocurrencies like bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH), with additional crypto-tokens to be included later. Switzerland has a distinct approach to cryptocurrencies and is notably different from countries like the United States, which appear to have a coordinated objective to eliminate them.
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Sygnum, a crypto-focused institution that obtained a banking license from Swiss regulators approximately four years ago, serves various entities, such as Cantonal banks and private banks. “Digital assets have become an integral part of the financial world, and our customers want access to this market at PostFinance, their trusted principal bank,” said PostFinance Chief Investment Officer Philipp Merkt in a statement.
“A reputable and established partner like Sygnum Bank with an excellent service offering is more important than ever.” According to Fritz Jost, the Chief B2B Officer at Sygnum Bank, PostFinance’s move into the crypto industry was partly motivated by retail banks in Switzerland experiencing outflows into the digital asset class.
“PostFinance became aware of a considerable number in the hundreds of millions each year of outflows to crypto exchanges and the like,” said Jost in an interview with news outlet. “So they saw that this is not only as an opportunity to add a new revenue stream, but also realized that this has a lot to do with client retention.”
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According to Jost, PostFinance has not yet determined which cryptocurrencies will be included, but a wide range will undoubtedly be offered. “We have seen banks make crypto available to their clients before, and the next thing they want is staking and so on,” said Jost. “I can certainly confirm PostFinance has a roadmap, and it’s a case of start with buy, hold and sell to sort of grease the wheels within the organization and clients.”
