The Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) has gone live on digital asset management technology provider METACO’s custody and orchestration platform Harmonize to pilot crypto services for its clients.
The bank will use Harmonize as the foundational platform for its expanding digital asset service provisions, with the solution managing governance and operations.
Following the pilot, UnionBank plans to allow clients to custody and exchange digital assets via its mobile banking app, without the need for an external wallet service.
UnionBank is one of the few institutions granted a crypto license in the Philippines, and is currently working on a Bitcoin and Etherium custody and trading services platform for retail investors, along with launching its own remittance payments stablecoin and exploring the Metaverse economy.
Henry Aguda, chief technology and operations officer and chief transformation officer at UnionBank, says: “UnionBank’s collaboration with METACO has been critical in the bank’s pursuit of delivering superior, customer-centric services to the Philippine market. 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 features for clients.”
Seamus Donoghue, chief growth officer at METACO, comments: “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.”
