Banco de Portugal stated earlier this week that Bison Bank, a Portuguese financial institution, has been granted a license to operate as a virtual asset service provider (VASP).
According to Portuguese news outlet Sapo, the financial institution will establish a unique business branch titled Bison Digital Assets which will operate as a virtual asset exchange. The division is the first bank-owned entity in Portugal to be approved by Banco de Portugal to provide custodial and crypto trading services.
Individual and institutional clients will be able to benefit from Bison Bank’s wealth management, depositary, and investment banking services, in accordance with its webpage. It is also owned by a Chinese private equity firm based in Hong Kong.
Earlier this year Utrust, a Portugal-based on-chain crypto payments startup, received the first comprehensive all-categories VASP license from Banco do Portugal as well.
In 2021 the Central Bank also authorised Criptoloja and Mind The Coin, two cryptocurrency exchanges to operate as VASPs in addition to Luso Digital Assets which was also awarded a crypto exchange license by the bank.
Photo by Luís Feliciano
