Largest bank of Nordic region forbids its 31,000 employees from trading in Bitcoin

Nordea, the largest bank in the Nordic region, has forbidden its 31,000 employees to trade in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ether citing high risk. The Nordic region includes Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Iceland and Norway.

The company in a mail to Reuters said that the ban will be imposed from the end of the next month.

“The risks are seen as too high and the protection is insufficient for both the co-workers and the bank,” a spokesperson for the bank said.

The company added that the people who already own cryptocurrencies will not be forced to sell them though they are recommended to do so.

Earlier, Bank of America Merrill Lynch banned clients from investing in one of bitcoin mogul Barry Silbert’s top funds last month.

Even in India, authorities have started tightening noose against the cryptocurrencies. The Registrar of Companies (RoC) has stopped registering cryptocurrency exchanges under the Companies Act, 2013.

The RoC, which works under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, has in certain cases, asked for an undertaking from software development or information technology companies that it will not deal with cryptocurrencies.

Reportedly, top banks of the country which include State Bank of India, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Yes Bank have suspended some accounts of major Bitcoin exchanges in India on suspicion of dubious transactions.

The exchanges which were on the receiving end include Zebpay, Unocoin, CoinSecure, BtcxIndia, among others.

The banks have reportedly asked for an additional collateral with 1:1 ratio on the loans the exchanges had taken.