(Reuters) -Binance is working with Spanish bank BBVA to allow customers to hold their assets off the crypto exchange, Financial Times reported on Friday.
The Spanish bank is working as one of only a small number of independent custodians for the world’s biggest crypto exchange, the report added, citing two people familiar with the matter.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report. BBVA did not immediately respond to a Reuters’ request for comment while Binance could not immediately be reached.
The move comes as Binance faces heightened regulatory scrutiny worldwide and as crypto exchanges seek to reassure investors about fund safety in the wake of FTX’s 2022 collapse.
Last February, U.S. authorities fined Binance more than $4.3 billion penalty for violating federal anti-money laundering and sanctions laws through lapses in internal controls at the company, while its founder and chief executive Changpeng Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison.
(Reporting by Abu Sultan in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)
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