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As interest grows in cryptocurrency, financial-services providers are taking note. The latest is Fiserv Inc., which announced on Thursday that financial institutions it works with will be able to allow their customers to buy, sell, and hold Bitcoin via their bank accounts. The capability is enabled via an integration between Fiserv and NYDIG, a Bitcoin technology and financial-services company.
Fiserv says the service means banks and credit unions will be able “to meet growing mainstream interest in Bitcoin, retain and grow their customer base, and increase non-interest income opportunities.”
The service enables consumers to manage Bitcoin transactions in their financial institution’s online and mobile-banking portals. Fiserv says future developments may include bank-based Bitcoin rewards programs.
“Interest in cryptocurrency, and particularly Bitcoin, has skyrocketed over the past several years, to the point that Bitcoin investing is now a commonplace activity,” Byron Vielehr, Fiserv’s chief digital and data officer, said in a statement. “People continue to turn to financial institutions as a central place to manage their financial activity, and being able to offer this capability will help position banks and credit unions at the forefront of their customers’ financial lives.”
Formed in 2017, New York City-based NYDIG is a subsidiary of Stone Ridge, an asset manager.
In related news, Bitcoin Depot, a cryptocurrency ATM deployer, said it will have 6,000 machines deployed by the end of the year. Some 22,130 such machines have been installed worldwide.
“Crypto ATMs are only going to increase in demand as consumers from all walks of life look to invest and use crypto in their daily lives to make payments, send remittances, etc.” Brandon Mintz, Bitcoin Depot chief executive and president, said in a statement. “I expect our ATMs to be as prevalent as regular ATMs within a few years.”
