The Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) has launched a pilot program for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) custody and trading services for select retail customers, according to a joint announcement on November 2.
UnionBank has launched a new investment and trading feature in collaboration with Swiss crypto technology firm Metaco, with the feature going live on Metaco’s digital asset platform Harmonize.
Furthermore, UnionBank first collaborated with Metaco in January 2022 to develop cryptocurrency trading services.
UnionBank, which is licensed and supervised by the Philippines’ central bank, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), has been actively exploring the cryptocurrency industry in recent years.
In addition, UnionBank launched a payments-focused stablecoin tied to the Philippine peso in 2019.
According to UnionBank’s chief technology officer and chief transformation officer, Henry Aguda, Metaco has been critical in the bank’s goal of providing “customer-centric” services in the Philippines.
He also mentioned that UnionBank was one of the country’s first regulated crypto adopters.
The announcement comes just days after Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos emphasized the importance of using blockchain technology to master digital banking and transactions.
