PostFinance, a Swiss retail bank owned by the government, is set to offer its customers cryptocurrency trading and storage services through a partnership with local cryptocurrency bank Sygnum. The move is in response to growing demand from PostFinance’s customers for access to the digital asset market. The partnership will enable PostFinance customers to buy, store, and sell major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin.
The crypto services will be enabled through Sygnum’s institutional business-to-business offering, which provides banks with regulated and compliant digital products. The B2B network includes over 15 partner banks and supports a range of cryptocurrencies, including revenue-generating services such as staking.
PostFinance’s chief investment officer Philipp Merkt noted that digital assets have become an integral part of the financial world, and customers want access to this market through their trusted principal bank.
“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.”
The move into crypto also aligns with PostFinance’s pro-crypto stance, as the bank has previously built its own crypto custody platform and issued digital collectibles linked to physical stamps in 2021.
The announcement of PostFinance’s crypto trading services comes shortly after Swiss Post announced the launch of Crypto Stamp 3.0, a new crypto stamp iteration featuring physical and non-fungible token versions integrated with artificial intelligence technology. The new crypto stamp is scheduled to go on sale on May 2, 2023.
In recent years, Switzerland has emerged as a hub for the crypto industry, with a supportive regulatory framework and a growing number of crypto startups and companies. The partnership between PostFinance and Sygnum is a positive development for the industry and is likely to encourage other traditional financial institutions to follow suit and offer cryptocurrency services to their customers.