TLDR
- Itaú Unibanco, Brazil’s largest bank, has opened crypto trading for all customers on its investment platform Íon.
- Initially, only Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) are available for trading.
- The bank developed its own crypto custody solution in-house rather than outsourcing it.
- Itaú is considering adding more cryptocurrencies based on customer demand and regulatory assessments.
- For stablecoins, the bank is waiting for clear regulations from Brazil’s central bank.
Itaú Unibanco, the largest bank in Brazil and Latin America, has expanded access to cryptocurrency trading on its investment platform Íon.
The bank has made Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) available for trading to all customers who download the Íon app.
This move comes after Itaú initially launched crypto services in late 2023 for a select group of customers. The decision to open up crypto trading to all users was based on weekly surveys conducted with the initial group, which showed strong support and demand for crypto-related products.
Guto Antunes, head of Itaú Digital Assets, revealed that the bank opted to develop its own security solution for customers’ crypto wallets internally, rather than outsourcing it.
“We have a participation and partnership with Liqi, but nothing regarding custody. The entire custody solution was designed and implemented within Itaú with our fiduciary duty in mind,” Antunes said.
While the bank did not disclose the exact number of Íon users, the report notes that the app has surpassed 3.5 million downloads across Android and iOS devices, which Antunes described as “significant for the crypto space and surprising.”
Despite the high acceptance, the offering to all users will initially be limited to only BTC and ETH. Antunes acknowledged that clients are requesting additional tokens, which are under consideration pending a thorough regulatory risk assessment by the bank.
Regarding stablecoins, Antunes stated that Itaú is waiting for clear regulations from Brazil’s central bank before considering their inclusion on the platform. He did not provide a specific timeframe for when these regulations might be issued.
Itaú Unibanco’s move to offer crypto trading to all its customers is a significant development in the Brazilian and Latin American markets.
The bank aims to compete with local entities like crypto exchange MB, BTG Pactual’s digital assets unit Mynt, and global players like Binance, which are also vying for a share of the Brazilian crypto market.
Itaú’s entry into the crypto space is part of a broader trend among traditional financial institutions exploring opportunities in the digital asset realm.
In July 2022, the bank launched tokenization services and created a Digital Assets unit to cater to companies seeking to put their assets on the blockchain and access broader financial markets.
