HSBC, a global bank with nearly $3T in assets, has decided not to offer bitcoin-related products and services to clients, bucking the trend of other large banks and traditional financial companies that are warming to digital assets, including JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo.

Why should we care?
HSBC made the decision after it banned customers using its online share-trading platform from buying shares in bitcoin-backed MicroStrategy in April. At the time, the bank said the move was related to a broader position not to facilitate the buying or exchange of products related to virtual currencies. The rationale for the outright ban on bitcoin, according to CEO Noel Quinn, was due to volatility. “Given the volatility we are not into bitcoin as an asset class. If our clients want to be there then of course they are, but we are not promoting it as an asset class within our wealth management business," Quinn said in an interview. The company won’t launch a crypto trading desk or offer the digital coins as investment products for customers, as some of its competitors have. While HSBC’s move goes against the grain when compared to many other large financial institutions that are offering bitcoin-related products, the bank says it believes in the capabilities of central bank-backed digital currencies (CBDCs) over the long term. HSBC is in talks with governments about CBDC initiatives, including those of the U.K., China, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates.