State Street Says Crypto Trading Could Damage Its Reputation

Global banking giant State Street does not have any cryptocurrency trading plans, according to Nadine Chakar, head of State Street Digital.

Chakar told London-based business media outlet Financial News that State Street did not want to risk its reputation by venturing into cryptocurrencies.

One of the most powerful women in finance mentioned that extreme volatility associated with cryptocurrencies was viewed as one of the key problems by State Street. The American financial services giant is also concerned about the lack of regulatory clarity.

In June 2021, State Street launched a digital finance unit after recognizing the growing importance of cryptocurrencies.

That department is mainly focused on tokenization, according to Chakar. The executive believes that the bank could significantly enhance the efficiency of blockchain trade by adding blockchain-powered rails to private assets and funds. Chakar, who joined State Street as the bank’s head of global markets back in 2019, claims that tokenization could potentially «change everything.»

The second oldest American bank also plans to launch a custodial service for crypto by the end of 2022. To that end, it formed a partnership with London-based Copper in early March.

Last month, Irfan Ahmad, the Asia Pacific digital lead for State Street’s crypto unit, said that cryptocurrency investors were undeterred by plunging cryptocurrency prices. Ahmad teased more local cryptocurrency-focused products that would go live in the near future.

The Boston-headquartered bank, which was founded all the way back in 1792, boasts $4.14 trillion worth of assets under management.

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