Russia’s Gazprombank Starts Offering Bitcoin Trading Facility in Switzerland

Gazprombank Switzerland, an associate bank of Gazprom Russia, has trialed its Bitcoin (BTC) transaction facility following endorsement from Swiss regulators.

As per announcement made on November 19, Gazprombank will offer its latest cryptocurrency solution in partnership with its long-standing associates such a financial technology company Avaloq and cryptocurrency custody provider Metaco.

Gazprombank Switzerland CEO Roman Abdulin stated that the latest service aims to transform cryptocurrency transactions “as easy as transactions with traditional assets,” stating:

“Digital assets will become increasingly important for our clients and the global economy. We are pleased to work together with leading Swiss-based entities on the further development of the Swiss and global crypto and blockchain ecosystem.”

In concurrence with launching its foremost Bitcoin trading facility, Gazprombank Switzerland also stated that the bank has become a member of OpenVASP, a top industry alliance centered on regulatory conformity for digital asset service providers or VASPs.

OpenVASP, rolled out in the final leg of 2019, aims to assist VASPs in meeting what is referred to as the “travel rule” Anti-Money Laundering regulation rolled out by the Financial Action Task Force.

As per the announcement, Gazprombank Switzerland is the foremost banking institution to become a member of OpenVASP alongwith top industry crypto focused companies such as the Swiss crypto exchange Bitcoin Suisse and local crypto bank Sygnum.

The recent news from Gazprombank Switzerland has come soon after the bank received endorsement from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority to provide crypto custody and trading facilities to institutional and corporate customers in the final week of October 2020.

Gazprombank Switzerland, which is 100% owned by Russia’s Gazprombank, has been doing the groundwork for rolling out cryptocurrency related services in Switzerland for the past two years.

Other than Gazprombank, there is yet another prominent Russian bank, which is involved in crypto and blockchain related activities outside the country. Earlier in September, Sberbank, Russia’s largest government backed bank, started using a blockchain powered platform facilitating commodity trade funding via its associate concern in Switzerland.