Some Major Canadian Banks Still Allow Cryptocurrency Credit Card Transactions

While TD Bank has revised its policies and stopped allowing customers to purchase cryptocurrencies using its credit cards, some major banks in Canada still allow crypto credit card transactions, the banks reportedly confirmed on Friday.

Also read: Indians Look to Buy Bitcoin Overseas as Regulations Tighten

TD Bank Halts Crypto Credit Card Purchases

Canada’s largest bank by assets as of April of last year, Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD Bank), said on Friday that it is “halting the use of its credit cards to buy cryptocurrency as it conducts a review of the ‘evolving market’,” Financial Post reported. The bank explained in an emailed statement:

At TD, we regularly evaluate our policies and security measures, in order to serve and protect our customers, as well as the bank.

TD Bank’s Friday announcement reverses its stance earlier this month when the bank said it permitted cryptocurrency purchases using credit and debit cards “as long as the merchant is authorized to accept Visa, Mastercard, Interac or Visa debit and the transaction isn’t determined to be fraudulent,” according to the bank’s spokeswoman Julie Bellissimo.

Some Banks Still Allow Crypto Credit Card Purchases

Some banks in Canada, however, still allow their customers to buy cryptocurrencies using their credit cards currently.

Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), the country’s second-largest bank by assets, said on Friday that “it does allow its credit and debit cards to be used for transactions involving cryptocurrency in limited circumstances,” Financial Post noted. Nonetheless, the bank cautioned clients about the volatility of cryptocurrencies which “could expose them to substantially higher debt levels than they are able to repay.” An RBC spokesperson said in an emailed statement:

We do recognize that regulatory, risk and other external environmental factors relating to cryptocurrency continues to evolve…As such, we continue to review our policies to consider how we can best support clients.

The Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank), the third largest bank in Canada by asset, is also looking closely at its cryptocurrency transaction policy, the news outlet added. The bank’s spokesperson said in an emailed statement, “We understand that regulatory and risk factors related to cryptocurrency continue to evolve and as a result, we are closely reviewing our policies with respect to cryptocurrency transactions.” At the time of this writing, the bank has not announced any changes in its policies.

Additionally, the National Bank of Canada, the country’s sixth-largest lender, said earlier this month that it allows crypto transactions, the publication further noted.

A Global Trend

Globally, an increasing number of banks are halting the use of their credit cards for cryptocurrency transactions. In the US, JP Morgan, Bank of America, and Citigroup have stopped allowing customers to use their credit cards to purchase bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

In the UK, Britain’s largest banking group, Lloyds Banking Group, has banned its customers from using credit cards from any of its subsidiaries to buy cryptocurrencies including Lloyds Bank, Bank of Scotland, Halifax, and MBNA.

In Australia, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) announced last week that it would no longer allow customers to purchase cryptocurrencies with credit cards. “We have made this decision because we believe virtual currencies do not meet a minimum standard of regulation, reliability, and reputation when compared to currencies that we offer to our customers,” the bank explained.

In Asia, Thailand has asked all commercial banks in the country to disallow cryptocurrency purchases using credit cards. In India, while SBI is allowing the use of its credit cards to buy cryptocurrencies for the time being, Citibank has banned the use of its debit and credit cards for crypto purchases.

Do you think all banks will eventually stop allowing crypto purchases using their credit cards? Let us know in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, TD Bank, RBC, and Scotiabank.

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