BCRA Bans Financial Institutions from Carrying Out or Facilitating Their Clients Crypto-Assets Transactions

Last May 5^th, 2022, the Central Bank of Argentina (the "BCRA", after its acronym in Spanish) published a press release on its website (the "Press Release") announcing that it discourages the offer of crypto assets through the financial system. The BCRA adopted this measure in particular to "mitigate the risks associated to transactions with these assets that could be generated for the users of financial services and for the financial system as a whole".

The Press Release referred to the May 2021 warning made in conjunction with the Argentine Securities Commission. It also highlighted that "the activity of financial institutions must be aimed to finance investment, production, commercialization, consumption of goods and services required by both domestic demand and exports". Furthermore,  stressed its concern that "the different actors involved in the operations with these assets may not be based in the country, which could generate deviations from the general regulations ".

Subsequently, on the same day, the BCRA published  Communique "A" 7506 (the "Communique"),  imposing a "ban" on operations with crypto assets within the rules for “Complementary services to the financial activity and permitted activities".

Specifically, the BCRA established that "financial institutions may not carry out or facilitate transactions with digital assets –including crypto assets and those whose yields are determined based on the variations that they register– which are not authorized by a national regulatory authority or by the BCRA".

The timing of this Communique is important, since it was adopted only a few days after , two financial institutions  offered their clients to invest in certain crypto assets such as Bitcoin, Ether and others through their home banking and/or apps.