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Spanish banks are preparing to start offering cryptocurrency services to their customers and will start to comply with new regulations. The Bank of Spain is creating an overview of virtual asset service providers and custody companies and Spanish banks are working hard to make it to the list. The list needs to be finalized before October 29.
Nonetheless, banks are not entirely sure if they are obligated to register. The Bank of Spain previously announced it would release the paperwork and instructions for the upcoming registry, however it failed to do so. Consequently, Spanish banks doubt whether they need to register again under applicable laws since they already comply with anti-money laundering laws. Some experts state that the process of “re-registering” should not be required for banks who would like to offer crypto services.
Gloria Hernández Aler of regulatory advisory firm Finreg, said in El Pais this week:
“It would not make sense for a bank to have to go through the requirements imposed by the standard. However, it does make sense for them to notify that they are going to provide this type of service and, probably, they will need to change their money laundering policy.”
The large banks in Spain are just waiting for the green light to start their crypto operations. Swiss bank BBVA, very popular in Spain, is already operating in the crypto space and offers exchange and custody services in Switzerland. Another Spanish bank, Caixabank, has its script for a trial ready and just wants the go-ahead.