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Portuguese Bank BiG Blocks Crypto Transfers
January 8, 2025 | By [Author]
In a move that has sent shockwaves through the crypto community, Portugal’s Banco de Investimentos Globais (BiG) has started blocking customer transfers to cryptocurrency platforms. The bank cited European Central Bank (ECB) guidelines and anti-money laundering regulations as justification for its decision.
According to a shared bank notification by Delphi Labs co-founder José Maria Macedo, BiG has taken the unprecedented step of restricting transactions to crypto exchanges. This move is likely to spark heated debate about traditional banking’s role in the crypto ecosystem.
Interestingly, other prominent Portuguese banks such as Caixa Geral de Depósitos are continuing normal operations, processing crypto-related transfers without any issues. The contrasting approaches within Portugal’s banking sector highlight a worrying trend of uneven adoption of crypto-related policies across European financial institutions.
The bank’s decision comes as the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulations have taken effect. This development is likely to lead to further uncertainty and market volatility in the stablecoin market, as evidenced by Tether’s recent $4 billion redemptions. The cryptocurrency’s market capitalization plummeted from $141 billion to around $137 billion over the Christmas period.
Some experts are warning that restrictions like BiG’s may push users towards alternative financial systems, rather than embracing digital assets and distributed ledger technology, as ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone advocated in a recent statement.
Source: cryptotale.org
