Colombia's First Commercial Bank to Pilot Crypto Services

A Colombian commercial bank established in 1870 is to trial cryptocurrency services through a sandbox project set up by the country’s financial regulator.

• Banco de Bogotá said Monday the pilot program begins this month and will allow the bank to explore business models and risks associated with the handling of crypto assets, according to a Portafolio report.
• The sandbox from the Financial Superintendence of Colombia is aimed to provide a "joint test space between the digital ecosystem and the National Government in terms of crypto assets," the news source said.
• The bank will select a limited group of clients for the pilot, who will be given the option to make cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals using Banco de Bogotá's mobile and virtual banking channels.
• As reported by CoinDesk, Colombia saw major growth in cryptocurrency use as a store of wealth as well as for transactional purposes in 2020.
• Peer-to-peer crypto marketplace LocalBitcoins said Colombia accounted for 11.3% of its global volume in 2020, making it one of the firm’s “main markets” alongside Russia and Venezuela.

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