Major roadblock for cryptocurrency ‘haven’
(CNS Business): Capital Treasury Services (CTS), the company that linked Bitcoin businesses to banks in the Isle of Man, has said it will no longer be doing business with digital currency businesses as of next month. CTS said that while government was supportive of efforts to build Bitcoin businesses, its banking partners were not so positive.
Earlier this year the jurisdiction’s Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) ruled that many of the island’s licensing laws did not apply to Bitcoin and other digital currencies, which many saw as paving the way towards a “Bitcoin haven†for businesses dealing with digital currencies.
CTS, a subsidiary of Capital International Group, is not a bank, but a treasury service, which holds funds for companies, working with banking partners in order to clear customer funds. However, pressure from these banking partners has forced CTS to withdraw its services from companies in the Isle of Man’s digital currency space.
The company said in a statement: “Although support from government is very strong and we have been keen to get behind the government’s initiative, we are only able to do so with the wider support of the financial sector, which has unfortunately now been withdrawn.â€
CTS is no longer taking on any more digital currency companies and will close the accounts of those it currently works with next month. “We will be working closely with those businesses already with us in order to find alternative providers and solutions, and are happy to talk with businesses and provide guidance from our experience in the sector,†CTS said.
Eric Benz of the UK Digital Currency Association said in a statement: “No stone is being left unturned, and there is a great confidence that new banking solutions will be provided shortly. CTS still believes in digital currencies. CTS are just the victim of its banking partners, making it impossible to keep working the way they have been doing.â€
Category: Finance, Financial Services
