Canada: Bank of Montreal toughens measures against cryptocurrency trade

The Bank of Montreal (BMO) of Canada will no longer allow customers to buy cryptocurrencies with Interac debit cards.

The information was disseminated by a spokesperson of the financial institution through an email. The Interac ban comes after reports were circulated in which the bank restricted purchases of cryptocurrencies through its MasterCard debit and credit cards a few weeks ago.

In the email, the spokesperson said:

I can confirm that we no longer allow the purchase of cryptocurrencies through Interac Online Payments or the use of a credit or debit card with the retail consumer MasterCard brand.

The rumors about the movement emerged last week in Reddit, when a user who claimed to work for the bank shared it in the form of an email received on March 28. The user photographed a computer monitor that showed the e-mail and included the Reddit publication image.

According to that email:

This decision was made due to the volatile nature of the cryptocurrencies, and thus better protect the safety of our customers and the bank.

Transactions will be blocked directly for MasterCard products, while a temporary charge will apply to customers who use an Interac card to purchase cryptocurrencies. However, Interac's transactions will also be blocked, according to the document.

The news came the same week that Danske Bank, the largest bank in Denmark, published a document that said cryptocurrencies are "negative" in general, for three main reasons: lack of client protection, high volatility and lack of regulatory oversight.

While Danske Bank will continue to allow its customers to buy cryptocurrencies with credit cards, it also stated that it will stop buying derivatives products related to cryptoactives.

Also, earlier this year, US banks JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America banned purchases related to cryptocurrencies using their credit cards.