Union Bank of Philippines Launches Crypto Trading Services – Which Coins Are Included?

cryptonews.com:

Digital asset management technology METACO announced that the Union Bank of the Philippines is now live on its flagship platform Harmonize, to launch a pilot program for crypto custody and trading services for select retail customers.

The pilot will include bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH).

According to a press release, UnionBank launching this pilot program is “a major step forward in the bank’s exploration of blockchain technology,” which follows its previous digital asset initiatives, including the launch of its stablecoin for remittance payments and entering the metaverse economy.

Henry Aguda, Chief Technology & Operations Officer and Chief Transformation Officer at UnionBank, was quoted as saying that,

“We are proud to continue UnionBank’s series of industry firsts, this time being the first regulated bank in the country allowing digital currency exchange feature for clients.”

UnionBank utilizes the digital asset custody platform Harmonize as “the foundational orchestration platform” and “a fully managed service deployed in the cloud,” thus managing governance and operations for the pilot, the company said, while the bank is preparing for a “wider rollouts” of its digital asset services.

Seamus Donoghue, Chief Growth Officer at METACO, said that,

Harmonize “provides UnionBank with the optionality to securely explore a range of retail and institutional digital asset use-cases, from crypto custody, investment and trading, to the fast-growing Metaverse economy in the Philippines.”

In regards to its plans to expand the service, the press release noted that the bank is “working closely” with the financial regulators and industry participants. The goal is,

“For millions of Filipinos to custody and exchange digital currencies such