Barclays bank stopped the development of crypto trading according to two anonymous sources of Financial News.
It looks like the Bank is back to the position it had in May when CEO of Barclays, Jes Staley declared that they will not trade cryptocurrencies, saying that they were being used for criminal purposes.
Circumstances of the decision making are not clear; it could be speculated that the bank’s commitment to abandon its plans was made under the pressure of regulators or that the demand for crypto services was miscalculated.
It is also possible that the move may be related to the prolonged decline of the cryptocurrency market that has been going on since January, partly due to the fickle attention of institutional investors.
However, after Staley’s announcement in July, Barclays filed two crypto patents focusing on crypto transfers. This move and their partnership with Coinbase brought the bank among the most crypto friendly banks.
In August it became known that Barclays created a division of top managers to launch a cryptocurrency project. Specialists had to assess the viability of the cryptocurrency assets and the demand for them from bank customers, as well as determine the type of IT infrastructure for launching the platform. Managers who were involved in the cryptocurrency project spoke positively about the blockchain industry and stated that digital money could become a full-fledged class of assets.
Let’s also not forget that only two weeks ago in September, Bank’s crypto trading lead Chris Tyrer’s resigned from the project leaving the crypto future of Barclays in uncertainty.
Other banks showing great interest in finding their profitable niche in the crypto world are surely watching Barclays’ move very closely. A move which can cost Barclays a reputable place in the future economics.
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