“Bank Aston is a tech enabled bank with a long-term desire to serve clients’ needs in the digital finance arena. We welcome the GFSC’s digital finance initiative and stand ready to play our part,” says CEO Paul Gorman.

Bank Aston, Guernsey’s newest bank and the first home-grown bank to be licensed on the island for thirty years, has welcomed today’s launch of a consultation by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) looking at the possibility of introducing digital currencies into the island’s financial and banking ecosystem.

Paul Gorman, CEO of Bank Aston, says, “This is a hugely exciting area with tremendous potential. The GFSC’s willingness to look at it will help keep Guernsey at the cutting edge of digital innovation and could open a massive new market for its financial services industry”.

The GFSC launched its Digital Finance Initiative in September “...to support innovations in digital finance.” It has since launched its Digital Forum, hosting roundtables with many of Guernsey’s leading financial organisations and representatives, which will have informed the launch of the consultation.

With the financial and associated services sectors contributing around 50% of Guernsey’s GDP, Bank Aston says the consultation fires the starting gun on a potentially revolutionary period for finance on the island.

Paul Gorman adds, “Estimates suggest there are more than 500 million holders of cryptocurrencies worldwide. With digital assets now moving into the mainstream, looking at ways to enable inter-operation with traditional financial services is the pragmatic and sensible move.”

“There is a long way to go – there need to be ways to hold and convert digital currencies and tokenised assets, for example. This consultation signals a progressive and forward-thinking outlook, ensuring Guernsey can operate at the centre of the global financial radar. This market is rapidly evolving so we hope as many people as possible contribute and respond to the consultation.”