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Small Canadian Bank VersaBank Creating Private Safety Deposit Boxes for Crypto

Adam James · @Shasdam | Feb 07, 2018 | 01:00

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With a BlackBerry cybersecurity expert on board, small Canadian bank VersaBank prepares to offer digital vaults for secure cryptocurrency storage.

Size Doesn’t Matter

VersaBank Inc. may not be the largest bank in Canada, but they’re looking to lead the charge in securing your cryptocurrency holdings. Based out of the city of London, Ontario, the bank plans to launch their digital vault by June, and customers from all over the globe are invited to open accounts.

CEO David Taylor told Bloomberg’s Toronto office that wealth security is rapidly changing, stating:

We’re using what banks are all about—safety and security—only what we’re doing now is saying that physical box in the basement is getting obsolete. Most people’s really valuable assets are contained in some sort of digital format, whether it be a deed or a contract or a cryptocurrency.

VersaBank is currently Canada’s smallest bank by assets but looks to give the country’s Big 6 a run for their money.

VersaBank’s announced plans come at a time when secure cryptocurrency storage is needed, with large-scale hacks and crypto theft taking place all too often.

A Focus on Privacy

Like physical safety deposit boxes, VersaBank’s appropriately-titled VersaVault will be totally private. However, not only will VersaBank not know the contents of the vault, they won’t be able to open it. Explains Taylor to Bloomberg:

Our differentiator in this market is to be secure and super private. The bank wouldn’t have any kind of back door to open up the vault, we’re just providing the facility that folks could put their digital keys in.

Security comes at a cost, however, as Taylor claims their vault service will be expensive, meaning it will likely serve primarily large, wealthy funds.

Neither First Nor Last

VersaBank isn’t the first to offer storage for cryptocurrency and digital assets. Palo Alto-based Xapo Inc. has been securing Bitcoin for clients for four years. Toronto’s precious metals-focused company Goldmoney also began storing Bitcoin in September. South Korea’s Shinhan Bank also has their own Bitcoin vault under construction.

Still, VersaBank is poised to lead the charge in storing digital assets and cryptocurrency. “We’re a digital bank that has very little human interface and serves as a warehouse for assets and liabilities, and makes a good spread in the middle,” Taylor told Bloomberg. “That’s banking in its essence.”

What do you think about banks securing cryptocurrency in digital vaults? Are you interested in purchasing your own digital safety deposit box? Let us know in the comments below!

Images courtesy of Pexels, Wikimedia Commons, Canadian Business Journal