Andrés Engler
Tue, December 14, 2021, 2:45 AM·1 min read
Brazil’s only stock exchange, B3, plans to enter the crypto market in 2022, InfoMoney reported, citing a Dec. 10 presentation from B3 President Gilson Finkelsztain.
B3 is exploring opportunities in the asset tokenization, digital asset custody and crypto-as-a-service (CaaS) segments, InfoMoney reported.
The Sao Paulo-based stock exchange is also considering services to facilitate over-the-counter (OTC) trading and access to liquidity centers.
“It is natural for us to expand into the unregulated world of cryptocurrencies,” said Finkelstein, who added that B3 is not planning to be a crypto exchange but provides services to crypto traders.
B3 expects to launch a crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF), although it did not establish which index a potential ETF would replicate.
Brazilian companies have launched five cryptos ETFs. Crypto asset manager Hashdex has launched three of these products, while fintech company QR Capital has released the other two.
In October, Brazil’s Central Bank said that B3 could serve as the blockchain leader for the smart contract system of a digital reality, a central bank digital currency (CBDC).