Bank of America Plans to Address Growing Cryptocurrency Interest

Bank of America, one of the largest financial institutions in the US, recently revealed in a memo that the bank has established a dedicated cryptocurrency research team.

According to a recent report published by Bloomberg, citing Bank of America’s memo, Alkesh Shah, who previously led Bank of America’s Global Technology Specialist team, will lead the cryptocurrency research team. Shah will report to Michael Maras, who leads Bank of America’s currency and commodity research globally.

In the latest memo, the North Carolina-based bank highlighted the growing interest in cryptocurrency assets and mentioned that the bank is well-positioned to provide research and analysis regarding the emerging asset class of digital currencies.

“The sector is currently valued at about $2 trillion, inflows to new ETP/ETFs at $50 billion and growing and venture capital firms are making significant investments in crypto/Blockchain Blockchain Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tampe Blockchain comprises a digital network of blocks with a comprehensive ledger of transactions made in a cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin or other altcoins.One of the signature features of blockchain is that it is maintained across more than one computer. The ledger can be public or private (permissioned.) In this sense, blockchain is immune to the manipulation of data making it not only open but verifiable. Because a blockchain is stored across a network of computers, it is very difficult to tampe Read this Term companies. Bank of America is uniquely positioned to provide thought leadership due to our strong industry research analysis, market-leading global Payments Payments One of the bases of mediums of exchange in the modern world, a payment constitutes the transfer of a legal currency or equivalent from one party in exchange for goods or services to another entity. The payments industry has become a fixture of modern commerce, though the players involved and means of exchange have dramatically shifted over time.In particular, a party making a payment is referred to as a payer, with the payee reflecting the individual or entity receiving the payment. Most commonl One of the bases of mediums of exchange in the modern world, a payment constitutes the transfer of a legal currency or equivalent from one party in exchange for goods or services to another entity. The payments industry has become a fixture of modern commerce, though the players involved and means of exchange have dramatically shifted over time.In particular, a party making a payment is referred to as a payer, with the payee reflecting the individual or entity receiving the payment. Most commonl Read this Term platform and our blockchain expertise. Cryptocurrencies and digital assets constitute one of the fastest-growing emerging technology ecosystems,” Candace Browning, Head of global research for Bank of America, mentioned in the memo.

Cryptocurrency Research

Some of the leading American banks, including JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs, are already providing extensive research about cryptocurrency assets. Earlier this year, Goldman Sachs restarted its cryptocurrency desk amid a boom in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Investment banking giant JPMorgan regularly publishes its crypto research note to provide the latest updates regarding leading cryptocurrency assets. In a recent interview with CNBC, JPMorgan’s strategists Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said that the institutional interest in Bitcoin has dried up.

“Institutional interest in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has dried up and even turned negative in May 2021. It’s probably close to flat at the moment. The most important thing to notice is that institutional interest started slowing down in April 2021, before the May correction,” Panigirtzoglou said during the interview.