Royal Bank of Canada to launch cryptocurrency exchange

By Nicholas Fearn

The Royal Bank of Canada, which serves more than 16 million customers, is gearing up to launch its own digital currency trading platform. 

According to a report from The Logic, it will enable customers to buy, sell and transfer digital currencies such as bitcoin and ether.

Although the bank hasn’t officially confirmed plans for the platform, it’ll reportedly be available to use for investments and in-store and online purchases. 

What’s more, the organization is also thought to be working on plans to allow customers to open bank accounts using cryptocurrencies further down the line. 

If these rumors are true, RBC will become Canada’s first bank to develop and launch a cryptocurrency trading platform for its customers and stakeholders.

This isn’t the first time RBC has expressed its interest in crypto. In 2017, the bank began using blockchain internally and has been experimenting with the technology since.

For example, the bank has enabled cross-border transactions and has even registered four patents in Canada and the US outlining how it could use cryptocurrencies in its operations over the coming years. 

“To individual users, managing cryptographic keys and transacting with different cryptographic assets can be a challenge,” reads one of the patents.

“In some situations, cryptographic asset transactions may take time to be confirmed, and/or may not be compatible or supported by merchant systems or point-of-sale devices.”

The news comes a month after a report by blockchain advocacy group the Canadian Chamber of Digital Commerce claimed that Canada is on the verge of becoming a global leader in blockchain, but only if it overcomes regulatory and funding issues.

It shows how total spending on blockchain solutions in Canada will increase from $72 million in 2019 to $644 million by 2023 and how Canada is the eighth-best place in the world to gain investment for a blockchain company.

But Canada’s blockchain and cryptocurrency industry has experienced notable hurdles, such as the downfall of Canadian blockchain companies Kik and QuadrigaCX.  

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