BBVA Gets Approval to Offer Bitcoin and Ethereum in Spain

• BBVA now provides Bitcoin and Ethereum trading in Spain under the new MiCA rules.
• Spain’s crypto adoption is rising with 9% of citizens now holding digital assets.
• European banks like Société Générale are moving into regulated cryptocurrency markets.

Spain’s financial authority has granted Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria consent to provide Bitcoin and Ethereum trading services. This approval aligns with the new Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which standardizes digital asset oversight across the European Union. The decision concludes a multi-year regulatory process, allowing BBVA to expand its digital asset services in a compliant manner.

The service will first be introduced to a small group of users and in the coming months it will gradually be expanded to all private customers in Spain. This approval follows successful implementations in Switzerland and Turkey, where similar services have been available since 2021 and 2023. The company has stated that it will use in-house cryptographic main custody technology instead of relying on an external custodian to increase the security of the digital assets. The bank’s platform is secure and user-friendly, but it does not offer advisory services. Clients will manage transactions using their digital assets independently of the bank.

European Banks Increasingly Embrace Digital Assets

European banks are not just focusing on digital assets. BBVA is not the only bank that has entered this sector; Société Générale and Deutsche Bank have also reported their activities in this area. SG-FORGE, a part of Societe Generale, is working on launching a currency-pegged stablecoin on the XRP Ledger, which would correlate further towards the integration of such technology into mainstream finance. While Deutsche collaborates with Taurus for crypto custody services and ZKsync to develop an Ethereum rollup solution, which enhances the scaling and efficiency of blockchain transactions.

These moves reflect a broader trend of incorporating regulated crypto services into traditional banking models. With major financial institutions now offering digital asset solutions, European banking is undergoing a fundamental transformation, aligning with MiCA’s regulatory framework.  

Related: Bitwise Launches Bitcoin Gold ETP in European Markets

Crypto Adoption in Spain Sees Significant Growth

According to reports, nearly 9% of Spaniards now possess digital assets, which is more than double from the figures recorded in 2022. Spain’s adoption rate is now at an equal level to that of France and Croatia; however, in terms of Eurozone rankings, it is behind Slovenia and Greece. From the report, 57% of Spanish crypto holders see this as an investment, while 19% would use it for payments, and 20% do both.

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