UnionBank: Filipinos Likely to Increase Crypto Holdings to 5% of their Portfolio by 2025

Cathy Casas, UnionBank of the Philippines’s (UnionBank) head of blockchain and application programming interface group, stated that the average Filipino investor will likely hold 3% to 5% of their personal assets in digital assets like Bitcoin in five years assuming markets are “stable.” 

Casas cited a report from Bloomberg that currently, an average Filipino investor holds about 1%-2% of their personal assets in crypto assets. She also noted that many of these crypto investors are young people, some of whom earn tokens from NFT virtual games.

She noted that if the market stays stable as it is now, she expects that these investors will likely increase their assets in crypto to upto 3%-5% within the next 5 years.

UnionBank has always been a pioneering entity when it comes to crypto and blockchain adoption in the Philippines. In 2019, the bank launched its first stablecoin PHX, which is used to facilitate a blockchain-based cross-border remittance transaction. This year, its digital bank Union Digital is set to launch its own crypto stable coin called PHD. (Read more: UnionBank’s UnionDigital to Launch Crypto Stablecoin PHD)

In August 2020, UnionBank aimed to pilot crypto custody service in the country as it partnered with HexTrust, a Hong Kong-based digital asset custodian, to provide digital asset custody services. (Read more: UnionBank to Provide Crypto Custody)

Moreover, UnionDigital CEO Arvie De Vera also disclosed with BitPinas in a webcast that the digital bank plans to offer cryptocurrency trading and custodial services, and announced that it will be using the cryptocurrency safekeeping technology from IBM and Swiss custody specialist Metaco. 

Cryptocurrency investing in the Philippines, however, is still not encouraged by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). While the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reiterated that the public must do their own due diligence before engaging. (Read more: BSP, SEC Do Not Encourage the Public to Invest in Crypto)

The recent Axie Infinity hacking incident that is worth $600 million, also triggered the BSP to flag again the risks of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The central bank reminded the public to remain cautious when dealing with GameFi (gaming-finance) projects involving digital tokens. (Read more: BSP Warns Public on GameFi Platform Risks After $600M Axie Ronin Hack)

Accordingly, Sky Mavis assured its investors that they are “working directly with various government agencies to ensure the criminals get brought to justice.” (Read more: Tracking the Stolen Funds from Ronin Network Using Breadcrumbs)

This article is published on BitPinas: UnionBank: Filipinos Likely to Increase Crypto Holdings to 5% of their Portfolio by 2025

Disclaimer: BitPinas articles and its external content are not financial advice. The team serves to deliver independent, unbiased news to provide information for Philippine-crypto and beyond.