Alicia Pertusa said that interested customers are seeking to explore the possibility of investing in crypto assets. According to the executive, most cryptocurrency transactions leave more traces than cash.
Renowned financial group BBVA has conducted different types of research and tests on blockchain technology for five years. Alicia Pertusa, Head of Customer Solutions Strategy at BBVA, has been involved in this process.
The Spain-based bank has marked a milestone with the launch of its first Bitcoin transaction and custody service in Switzerland. The regulatory framework in that country allows exploring innovation in digital asset management, which is why its deployment has been possible.
This Service as a New Bet
Pertusa said that BBVA has been working in the blockchain arena for five years. She noted that it has been necessary to dedicate time to build this path as that technology requires new and different capabilities. They had to receive training in internal profiles in a complex technology with technical, legal, risk, and compliance implications.
Besides, she added that there are also regulatory reasons since there is still a lot of work to do in that direction, and they must work within a regulated framework. Likewise, she stated that they had to wait for the technology to reach sufficient maturity to offer standard financial industry services.
Regarding the reason for trading Bitcoin, she explained that they did so because it is the most widely accepted cryptocurrency in the world. However, she emphasized that their goal is to enable customers to access new markets for digital assets.
According to the executive, those interested include private or institutional banking customers looking to diversify their portfolio by investing in crypto assets. Likewise, she said that some retail customers want to explore the possibility of investing in these types of assets. “These assets have high volatility, which some investors consider an attractive feature. Of course, they are not exempt from multiple risks such as liquidity and strong price fluctuations,” she said.
New Cryptocurrency Regulations
The Head of Customer Solutions Strategy recalled that people initially associated Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with illicit activities. However, she said that has changed in several ways since that time.
She explained that two factors have contributed to this. On the one hand, the security forces of several countries have made efforts in the fight against the financing of terrorism. On the other hand, new transaction analysis tools focused on AML (anti-money laundering) with crypto assets have appeared.
“Currently, reports from specialized companies indicate that illicit practices involve less than 1.5% of total Bitcoin transactions. However, the UN estimates that between 2% and 5% of fiat money have illicit uses worldwide,” Pertusa explained.
According to the expert, most transactions with cryptocurrencies leave more traces than cash and even electronic money. In this regard, she said that adequate tools and knowledge are necessary to use the information that the blockchain provides.
Creation of Digital Currencies
Alicia Pertusa said that BBVA considers the potential of asset tokenization worth exploring. They see this as a significant innovation that could transform capital markets and the exchange of any security or data.
“Everyone knows that blockchain technology allows the creation of unique digital assets that we can store and exchange from person to person. It is also possible to program and run them automatically on a shared database publicly available to anyone. These characteristics could have a significant impact on the way to store and trade digital assets,” Pertusa explained.
She noted that more than 50 central banks worldwide are analyzing the need to create digital money. “At the end of that analysis, those financial institutions can find whether it makes sense to create another digital version of each currency or not,” she concluded.
By Alexander Salazar
