TD is the latest financial institution to ban customers from crypto purchases using credit cards. The wave of bans was initiated by US banks JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup on Febrary 3.
It was followed by the UK’s Lloyds Banking Group and Virgin Money. Last week, Citibank India barred customers from using debit or credit cards to buy cryptocurrencies.
Toronto–Dominion Bank (TD), a Canadian multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, is halting the use of credit cards to buy cryptocurrency as it conducts a review of the “evolving market.”
A TD representative said the bank recently made the decision to pause on allowing cryptocurrency purchases via credit cards to conduct a review and assessment of this evolving market.
“At TD, we regularly evaluate our policies and security measures, in order to serve and protect our customers, as well as the bank.
Other banks in Canada, however, still allow their customers to buy cryptocurrencies using their credit cards.
On Friday, Royal Bank said it does allow its credit and debit cards to be used for transactions involving cryptocurrency in limited circumstances, but cautioned clients about the possibility of a sudden drop in the value of cryptocurrencies which “could expose them to substantially higher debt levels than they are able to repay.”
“We do recognize that regulatory, risk and other external environmental factors relating to cryptocurrency continues to evolve,” an RBC spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “As such, we continue to review our policies to consider how we can best support clients.”
The third largest bank in Canada by asset, the Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank), is also looking closely at its cryptocurrency transaction policy.
“We understand that regulatory and risk factors related to cryptocurrency continue to evolve and as a result, we are closely reviewing our policies with respect to cryptocurrency transactions,” the bank’s spokesperson said in an emailed statement.