Santander appoints crypto custodian Taurus to safeguard Bitcoin, Ether: Report

Spanish financial services giant Banco Santander has reportedly selected digital asset management firm Taurus to safeguard its Swiss clients’ Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).

On Nov. 20, Santander Private Banking International’s Swiss private banking unit rolled out a new Bitcoin and Ether trading service for clients with Swiss accounts. A Santander spokesperson told Cointelegraph that clients will get access to crypto investment services only after requesting it through relationship managers.

A CoinDesk report citing “a person familiar with the arrangement” stated that the bank had appointed crypto custody firm Taurus for the safekeeping of the crypto assets. Cointelegraph reached out for confirmation from Santander, which declined to comment, saying:

“Unfortunately, it’s a no comment. We don’t comment on providers or possible providers.”

On Sept. 14, Taurus partnered with German banking giant Deutsche Bank to provide cryptocurrency custody options to its customers.

Taurus did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.

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While some banks tap into existing players for custodial needs, DZ Bank — the third largest bank in Germany by asset size — launched its own digital assets custody platform built on blockchain.

Holger Meffert, head of securities services and digital custody at DZ, expressed the bank’s interest in distributed ledger technology. The bank also hopes to offer institutional investors and private customers the facility to buy cryptocurrencies, “such as Bitcoin,” in the future.

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