A group of undisclosed investors joined their forces to create the first bitcoin bank in the world. Presently, this bank is applying for a license, reports Die Handelszeitung.

According to the newspaper, “several sources” informed journalists about the registration process. The bitcoin bank team currently consists of eight members.

“Managers of the banks have knowledge both in IT and traditional finance. We hope to apply for Bank license in a few weeks. First people already got in business and now the bank is searching for the premises,” says the bank’s IT Specialist Guido Rudolphi.

The new bank will specialize in bitcoin credit, one of the project’s key investors told the newspaper.

“The industry is moving ahead. Some segments are rising while some are still on the horizon,” says the investor.

Handelszeitung does not mention the date when the supposed “Bitcoin bank” will finally receive the license. The newspaper does not disclose the name of the project.

This is not the first attempt to create a “Bitcoin bank”. In September 2014, a bitcoin startup Circle presented itself as a bitcoin bank to American audience. The key bank feature of Circle was the possibility to make secure deposits. However, Circle did not allow its clients to borrow bitcoins from the firm, which caused complaints from Reddit users who argued that Circle was not a real bitcoin bank.

At the end of 2014, several Chinese exchanges began offering profitable bitcoin deposits to their customers. None of these services applied for a banking license due to the complexity of financial regulation in China.

Switzerland is becoming more and more attractive for bitcoin businesses. Xapo moved its headquarters to Zurich after meeting with some difficulties in California. And recently, one of the key Swiss banks, UBS also demonstrated interest towards bitcoin and blockchain.

Roman Korizky