Is HSBC Bank Blocking All Users’ Bitcoin Purchases and Cryptocurrency-Related Transactions?

• HSBC could be blocking crypto-related purchases
• Several financial institutions have taken similar measures in the past

The British multinational banking company, the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC), seems to have been halting crypto-related transactions. This is according to a Reddit user that talked with a “customer service agent” of the bank. Apparently, the intention is to protect users from volatility.

HSBC Could be Blocking Crypto-Related Transactions

According to the Reddit user BlockHeart357, he had a conversation with a “customer service agent” of the bank that explained that virtual currencies are volatile. The author of this post explained that before the incident, his crypto purchases were carried out normally and without any major issue. However, his card got blocked without any previous message or warning.

The agent of HSBC said that the bank is blocking transactions because they are very volatile. Moreover, he said that “these kinds of transactions” are going to be blocked by the bank.

There are some users that are complaining about this issue with banks. This would make some individuals move towards other solutions such as crypto ATMs that tend to have higher fees to process cash transactions.

This is not the first time that there is a financial institution saying that they will not be processing crypto payments and transactions for users. JP Morgan and Bank of America have also decided to halt purchases of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies for users dealing with credit cards.

Banks want to avoid problems with volatility and how it can affect clients financial stability with the price swings that the crypto market tends to experience. Other banks in Australia followed similar measures in the past.