DBS bank dubs Bitcoin as ‘unique’ despite its volatile nature

2022 has been a challenging one for the cryptocurrency market, which together saw a loss in value of over $1 trillion. Security concerns have also been brought to light, as this year is on track to set a new record for the value of cryptocurrencies stolen, which currently stands at $3 billion.

In spite of concerns about ongoing market volatility, DBS believes Bitcoin (BTC) continues to provide ‘a unique’ opportunity owing to its capacity to engage in continuous trading without the need for a central party for clearing transactions, as per a report published by finews.asia on October 14.

DBS investment strategist Daryl Ho said:

“I think Bitcoin is still unique whether the price changes or not. If we just look purely on a price basis, you will see a lot of volatility and that doesn’t inform you a lot about what benefits it actually brings.”

Bitcoin’s unique factor is its usefulness

According to Ho, the distinctiveness of Bitcoin is not based on its price but rather on its usefulness, which enables money to be transferred in a decentralized way without the need of a central counterparty to clear the deal.

“If you were holding onto certain rationed assets as the start of February, you may not have been able to liquidate them at will because sometimes, exchanges were closed,» he explained.”

Ho added:

“But the Bitcoin market was open 24/7. So there was an avenue for you to raise cash and liquidity, if necessary. Before Bitcoin, there has never been any avenue that could do this.”

DBS has been progressively building its business in the asset class, notably via its DBS Digital Asset Exchange (DDEx), which saw trade volumes rise in June of this year to twice what they were in April.

Relatively recently, the bank has also begun providing access to its more affluent customers, in addition to providing it to its institutional, family office, and private banking customers.