According to Reuters, Brazil’s largest bank Itau Unibanco launched cryptocurrency trading services for its investment platform clients on Monday (4th). Guto Antunes, the digital assets director, stated in an interview that Itau’s new service will initially offer Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) trading, with plans to expand to other cryptocurrencies in the future as part of their overall strategy.
This move allows Itau to compete with local companies in Brazil such as the cryptocurrency exchange MB, the digital assets division Mynt of investment bank BTG Pactual, and international exchange giants like Binance. Antunes believes that Itau will stand out in the competition because the bank will also act as a custodian, protecting users’ assets.