Australia’s Largest Bank Sees Greater Risks of Not Participating” in Crypto –

The CEO of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), the country's largest bank, sees major risks in not getting involved in cryptocurrencies. “We see risks in participating, but we see greater risks in not participating,” he explained.

Crypto FOMO, banks need to get involved, says Commonwealth Bank CEO

Commonwealth Bank of Australia CEO Matt Comyn spoke about the fear of missing out (FOMO) when it comes to Bitcoin and cryptocurrency in an interview with Bloomberg Television in Sydney on Thursday. Commonwealth Bank or Commbank is an Australian multinational bank with operations in New Zealand, Asia, the United States and the United Kingdom

Comyn explained that although cryptocurrencies are “very volatile and speculative,” banks need to be involved in crypto and blockchain technology, citing customers’ insatiable demand for crypto trading. He said:

We see risks in participation, but we see greater risks in non-participation.

While he stressed, "It's important to say that we don't have a view of the asset class itself," he noted, "we see it as a very volatile and speculative asset."

Furthermore, the bank believes that cryptocurrencies are here to stay. The CEO of Commbank said:

We also don't think the industry and the technology will disappear anytime soon. That's why we want to understand it and offer our customers a competitive offer with the correct information about risks.

The Commonwealth Bank boss also commented on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). “Many central banks are looking at the applicability of a central bank digital currency, what would that look like, what would be the benefits of it,” he said. "We'd like to be a part of that. We think it's important for Australia to build capabilities and test different versions of the future. We hope we can contribute to that."

Earlier this month, the bank announced that in collaboration with crypto exchange Gemini, it will allow some customers to buy, sell and hold crypto assets directly through its app and Litecoin,” the bank said, adding: “The pilot will begin in the coming weeks and CBA aims to gradually roll out more features to more customers in 2022.”

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