UnionBank of the Philippines will become the first bank in the country to offer cryptocurrency trading services.
UnionBank customers can soon purchase and sell Bitcoin (BTC) directly through the mobile banking app, without the need for a third-party virtual asset wallet.
The new exchange functionality will initially be offered to randomly pre-selected users of the banking app, although a wider rollout will eventually follow.
“By launching this new feature, we are hitting two birds with one stone —future-proofing the Bank and satisfying the needs of customers who use cryptocurrencies,” Henry Aguda, Senior Executive Vice President Chief Technology and Operations Officer and Chief Transformation Officer said.
She added that the Bank is also hoping to launch the country’s first-ever Metaverse Center of Excellence sometime in the next few months.
“This is one of the things we are working on as we clear our path towards the metaverse,” Henry Aguda said.
While the platforms of some digital banks in the Philippines, like Maya, are already offering exchange options for crypto assets, Unionbank will be the first major traditional lender to implement one.
UnionBank first entered the new digital space when it partnered with homegrown NFT game Ark of Dreams in April. a
