Itaú Unibanco Plans Stablecoin
Date: 2025-04-04 Author: Gabriel Deangelo Categories: BUSINESS
Guto Antunes, head of digital assets at Itaú, said the bank is actively exploring the use of stablecoins based on successful examples in the United States. Last year, the bank already allowed users of its investment platform Íon to trade cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Antunes emphasized that Itaú is closely monitoring how financial companies in the United States integrate stablecoins for payments and settlements. He also noted the importance of regulating this market, citing the recent approval of a stablecoin transparency bill by a U.S. House committee. The administration of former President Donald Trump has also shown interest in regulating the sector.
According to Antunes, Itaú intends to wait for an official opinion from the Central Bank of Brazil before moving forward with its stablecoin project. However, he expressed concern about the regulator’s proposed ban on self-custody of stablecoins.
“Stablecoins are a topic that we always keep in mind. It is impossible to ignore the potential of blockchain for atomic settlements,” Antunes said.
It is worth noting that Brazil’s National Monetary Council (CMN) recently banned closed-end pension funds from investing in cryptocurrencies due to their high volatility. However, despite this conservative approach, a bill was introduced to the National Congress in March that would allow for the payment of salaries in Bitcoin.
Itaú Unibanco continues to study the potential of stablecoins, trying to find the best way to integrate them into its financial services, taking into account both domestic and international trends in the cryptocurrency space.
