Swissquote Bank Launching ‘Nuke Proof’ Crypto Custody

Online banking and trading group Swissquote is launching a crypto custody service later this month.

The Switzerland-based firm announced Friday that, starting March 21, retail and institutional customers will be able to transfer cryptocurrencies from external wallets to be stored in a Swissquote account.

Swissquote has partnered with Zug-based Crypto Storage AG, a subsidiary of Crypto Finance AG, for the new offering.

Crypto Storage AG offers a proprietary solution for managing cryptocurrency private keys using “highest grade hardware security modules” (HSMs), according to information on its website.

“Our HSMs are the same as those built for the Swiss National Bank [the country’s central bank] and that nothing is outsourced or could allow for a backdoor to be built in,” Crypto Storage CEO Stijn Vander Straeten told CoinDesk.

He added:

“Our server racks are stored in a former military bunker in the Swiss Alps which is nuke proof. So, yes, we care about security.”

Swissquote already offers cryptocurrency trading services, having launched bitcoin (BTC) trading in partnership with Bitstamp back in July 2017. It added support for bitcoin cash (BCH), ether (ETH), litecoin (LTC) and XRP later the same year.

In November 2017, the firm also launched a bitcoin exchange-traded certificate that moves investors’ holdings between bitcoin and U.S. dollars with the help of a machine learning algorithm, aimed at curbing the cryptocurrency’s volatility.

In early 2018, Swissquote launched a multi-cryptocurrency certificate on the SIX Swiss Exchange, offering exposure to bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ether and litecoin. The bank has also been listed on SIX since 2000.

Swissquote image via Shutterstock