Key Takeaways:
- Customers of Flushing Bank will be able to buy, sell, and hold bitcoin directly from their online banking accounts in the near future.
- The functionality will be available in Q1 through NYDIG and Q2 Holdings, according to the New York State-chartered bank.
- Flushing Bank uses Q2’s digital banking services.
Flushing Bank, a New York State-chartered commercial bank, announced Tuesday that it will begin offering Bitcoin services to its customers in Q1 2022.
The firm is the latest traditional financial institution to jump on the Bitcoin bandwagon, thanks to a partnership with institutional bitcoin broker NYDIG, which will help the Flushing Bank’s online banking provider, Q2 Holdings, integrate bitcoin purchasing, selling, and holding solutions.
“Using NYDIG’s innovative technology to provide seamless access through our relationship with Q2, our online banking provider, we will be able to offer our customers the ability to buy, sell, and hold bitcoin,” said John R. Buran, Flushing Bank’s president and CEO, per the statement. “This partnership provides our customers with a fully integrated solution to conduct bitcoin transactions in a safe and secure environment.”
The move, according to Buran, is part of Flushing Bank’s “ongoing digital transformation,” which aims to keep the financial institution up to date on emerging trends and consumer demand.
“Consumer interest in bitcoin is growing rapidly and NYDIG has the tools and expertise to help community banks meet that demand,” said Patrick Sells, CIO at NYDIG, according to the statement. “Together with forward-thinking institutions like Flushing Bank, we’re on the path to achieving our mission of bitcoin for all.” Through Q2’s institutional clients, NYDIG partnered with digital banking solutions provider Q2 in June to bring bitcoin to more than 18 million end-consumers. Five Star Bank and UNIFY credit union became the first two Q2 clients to opt into the Bitcoin ecosystem, a few months after the collaboration began to bear fruit.
