Falcon Private Bank Becomes First Swiss Bank to Offer Bitcoin & Crypto-Asset Management to Clients

July 12th, 2017 at 3:37 pm UTC · 5 min read

With the launch of the first of their crypto-asset management products, a product that allows clients to buy, hold and sell Bitcoin (XBT/BTC) through the bank, Falcon Private Bank is writing history as the first private bank worldwide offering clients direct exposure to Bitcoin by owning the asset itself.

Clients of Falcon Private Bank will from today on be able to access, acquire, hold and liquidate Bitcoin directly through their e-banking platform or their account manager, and will be able to monitor their holdings in custody directly in their online portfolio or as part of standard account statements. Additionally a Bitcoin ATM will be available for clients directly in the lobby of Falcon Private Bank’s Zurich branch at Pelikanstrasse 37.
Bitcoin Suisse AG provides the underlying infrastructure and support for this new product offering, and acts as the AML-regulated broker of Falcon Private Bank. Bitcoin Suisse AG is a Swiss-based broker, asset manager and financial service provider specializing in crypto-assets. Falcon Private Bank and Bitcoin Suisse AG, supported by their various partners, have been engaged with one another since January 2017 in setting up this new product offering, technically as well as regulatory-wise. Following a final review by auditors, the product has now received the approval from the FINMA, the Swiss Financial Markets Regulatory Authority.

Bitcoin Suisse AG, a regulated financial service provider specializing in the decentralized financial markets and in crypto-assets, announced its engagement with Falcon Private Bank today. Falcon Private Bank is a Swiss private banking institution with 14.6 billion CHF of client assets (31.12.2016), headquartered in Zurich with locations in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, London and Luxembourg. A press release from Falcon Private Bank earlier today announced that FINMA has given Falcon Private Bank the approval, making the bank the first Swiss banking institution to offer Bitcoin, the world’s most valuable crypto-currency/crypto-asset, directly to clients. As the Bank’s crypto-asset broker and infrastructure partner, Bitcoin Suisse AG has assisted in providing the full suite of products and services necessary to acquire, safeguard, track, and trade crypto-assets for institutional clients and high net worth clients.

Founded in August 2013, Bitcoin Suisse AG provides a range of financial services and products for individuals, companies and institutions in the new crypto-financial and decentralized market space, including brokerage, trading, asset management, ICO services, software integrations and consulting solutions based on crypto-assets and blockchain technologies.

Bitcoin Suisse AG is, among other things, known for supplying the crypto-payment solution infrastructure for the town of Zug, which July 1st 2016 became the first public entity worldwide to accept Bitcoin and other crypto-assets as payment for public services. The oldest Swiss company in the market and AML-regulated since 2014, Bitcoin Suisse AG is as of 2017 a world-leading provider of compliant crypto-financial services.

Commenting on the announcement, Bitcoin Suisse AG CEO Niklas Nikolajsen said, “Bitcoin Suisse is proud to support Falcon Private Bank in this historic product offering. Falcon Private Bank is, to my knowledge, the first private bank worldwide to offer crypto-assets directly to their clients. It has been a pleasure assisting Falcon in realizing this product offering, which is nothing less than a historic milestone for Bitcoin and for the entire crypto-financial space. A bank offering crypto-assets is a game changer, as it gives institutional clients and high net worth individuals a counterparty in regard to crypto-assets upon which they can rely: A regulated Swiss bank”.

“Because of its cryptographically-limited supply and its unique set of properties, in just a few short years Bitcoin has swiftly become a peerless store of value. With the recent growth in market capitalization and liquidity, Bitcoin and the other major crypto-assets offer a way to diversify cash holdings. While the volatility of crypto-assets has historically been very high, the trend the past few years has been very positive, as adaption has grown, with the Falcon Private Bank offering now definitively bridging the gap between crypto- and traditional finance. This past year, high net worth individuals and institutions have increasingly demanded access to directly invest and diversify into Bitcoin through a trustworthy and regulated financial institution, and we are excited to be a part of realizing this demand through our collaboration with Falcon Private Bank.”

Niklas Nikolajsen added, “This announcement marks a major leap for Bitcoin as an asset class and indeed for all the crypto-assets. The door has been opened wide for an entirely new class of investors to engage in the crypto-asset market. As the blockchain industry grows worldwide, we are evermore confident that other institutions will follow Falcon Bank’s innovative lead in offering clients direct access to digital currencies and crypto-assets.”

According to Nikolajsen, the Swiss financial industry is a critical market for establishing Bitcoin and crypto-assets worldwide. “Switzerland is not only historically one of the most important and trustworthy financial markets in the world, it is also currently at the forefront of FinTech development, and has probably the most progressive regulatory framework for crypto-finance anywhere in the world” said Nikolajsen. “That is particularly interesting for both established companies and start-ups engaging in the crypto-financial space, since the transparent and progressive regulatory approach of the Swiss financial market supervising authority, the FINMA, has created clear rules of engagement for dealing with digital finance.” As a result, Switzerland has become a role model for the transparent and regulatory safe business in Bitcoin- and crypto-asset space, with especially the region of Zug, also known as “Crypto Valley,” leading the way.

About Bitcoin Suisse AG

Founded in August 2013, Bitcoin Suisse AG (BTCSAG) is a regulated Swiss financial intermediary, service provider and asset manager, which focuses on crypto-assets. BTCSAG provides financial services – including brokerage, trading, ICO-services and asset management and consulting solutions – based on crypto-assets and blockchain technologies. BTCSAG and subsidiaries has (Q3 – 2017) has an avg. monthly turnover of ~150M USD and has a permanent staff of some 20 employees.

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David Wachsman

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