This development includes trading, consulting, and managing digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).
KB Kookmin, the largest and most important South Korean bank, is planning to offer crypto custody services for Bitcoin and Ether. In late January, the bank asked the South Korean Intellectual Property Office to register the trademark. This is according to what local media recently reported.
This cryptocurrency custody platform of the bank will be called KBDAC (KB Digital Asset Custody). Although the exact launch date is still unknown, the trademark registration means that most of the development process of the crypto custody solution is complete.
In its request, the bank expresses its desire to register the KBDAC brand in more than 20 areas, all related to the cryptocurrency industry. These areas include trading, consulting, and managing digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH). It also specifies virtual asset shipping, settlement, and fiat currency transactions.
The nature of these 20 areas that the bank asked to register suggests that the idea of this financial institution is to offer crypto products and services. The service would not only consist of receiving or storing digital assets but also managing them in investment funds.
Previous Steps
Last June, KB Kookmin partnered with the startup Atomrigs Labs to work on the development of this new asset management platform. The idea of both companies was to explore digital asset management and different solutions. This is what a bank official explained to local media.
This Seoul-based initiative uses multi-part computing cryptographic (MPC) technology to store cryptocurrencies. Besides, it seeks to achieve the growth of the digital asset market and find new businesses related to cryptocurrencies. However, there are not many details about this development.
About Atomrigs Labs
Atomrigs Lab is a company specialized in the development of blockchain solutions for the financial sector. This startup has worked on the development of blockchain-based digital asset protection systems.
KB Kookmin Bank and Atomrigs Lab will continue to cooperate in the development of digital asset management services. They will seek to take advantage of the Atomrigs Lab’s technology and the internal protection control infrastructure of KB Kookmin Bank.
Regulation in South Korea
Previously, South Korea worked in the regulation of crypto exchange houses to prevent money laundering. In this way, these types of companies can operate in the country without problems if they are registered.
To achieve this goal, lawmakers amended the Financial Prevention law to include new measures and help prevent money laundering. This law requires that South Korean cryptocurrency exchange houses be registered with regulators.
Plans for the Future
KB Kookmin bank is also considering to launch other cryptocurrency-based services, such as marketing, investment advisory, and asset management, according to local media. This would be the beginning of more crypto services for the users in South Korea.
Meanwhile, in Germany, more than 40 banks asked the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority for authorization to offer the Bitcoin custody services. This is possible, as in the case of South Korea, after the presentation of a new regulatory law in the country to protect all the users and avoid financial crimes, a protocol that South Korea is following.
By María Rodríguez
