Maerki Baumann is a Swiss bank and asset management company based in Zürich. According to new reports, they are now set to begin to accept and facilitate the management of cryptocurrencies and digital assets.
This is important as Switzerland is often considered to be one of the countries at the fore of cryptocurrency and the blockchain revolution. Home to Zug, the Crypto Valley and home to a crypto-savvy and crypto-friendly population, by having local banks and financial firms open their doors to cryptocurrency, Switzerland could indeed lead a charge towards cryptocurrency adoption within a mainstream banking sector.
As it stands, Maerki Baumann won’t be operating as a cryptocurrency exchange just yet, nor will customers be able to buy or sell cryptocurrency through Maerki Baumann, however they will allow their customers to store cryptocurrencies with the bank and will also offer cryptocurrency management services to those customers.
According to a press release on The Paypers:
“The bank is not offering direct investments in cryptocurrencies, but an alternative for clients who had to take their assets to other countries, such as Liechtenstein. Moreover, the bank will accept those crypto assets that have been received for a service or from successful mining. It is also ready to provide its clients with crypto experts if required. Overall, Maerki Baumann remains largely sceptical of cryptocurrency investments and believes that they are they are not suited for long-term investment.”
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Hopefully, this will encourage Maerki Baumann to explore cryptocurrencies further, not as an investment opportunity, but as a viable alternative to FIAT currency. Indeed, it seems that Maerki Baumann are against cryptocurrency as an investment solution for the long term, but by opening their doors to cryptocurrency assets, they are suggesting that they still believe cryptocurrency has a future as a real currency in Switzerland.
We must not forget that though Switzerland is a part of Europe, they do not use the Euro and the Swiss FIAT currency is actually the Franc, therefore, a nationwide roll out of cryptocurrency as a real currency is logistically less challenging than what Switzerland’s neighbours in France, Germany and Austria might encounter.
