Nubank, one of Latin America’s largest crypto banks and backed by Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway, announced on Sept. 10 the immediate suspension of trading for Nucoin, its native cryptocurrency. The token’s price has dropped over 97% over the last year.
Nubank announced the creation of the Nucoin token on the Polygon blockchain on Oct. 19, 2022.
Almost two years after the announcement, the bank closed its trading. The bank has given customers who have at least 10 reals ( in Nucoins (NUC) the option to convert them to Bitcoin or stablecoin USDC by Dec. 9.
As Cointelegraph Brazil reported, if a user does not proceed with the conversion, the cryptocurrencies will be kept for accumulation and “future benefit from the rewards program”.
“To protect you and all participants from potential volatility in the market value of Nucoins due to potential reactions to this update, we have chosen to suspend your trading immediately,” Nubank said in an email to customers, according to the media report.
According to CoinMarketCap data, Nucoin’s last traded price was $0.0158. The token has dropped over 97% over the last year. On April 22, it traded at its all-time high of $0.59.
Nucoin’s financials. Source: CoinMarketCap
Nubank started off with grand plans
Nubank’s cryptocurrency services started in May 2022. It announced that it would allocate 1% of its net assets to Bitcoin (BTC). In May 2022, the bank announced a partnership with Paxos to enable its customers to buy, sell, and store cryptocurrencies directly through Nubank.
In July this year, Nubank said it had 100 million customers with operations in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. A Nov. 22 statement by Nubank said it offered 14 cryptocurrencies in addition to Nucoin (NUC).
Argentina grew in crypto adoption amid distrust on banks
According to analysts from Forbes, Argentina has been at the forefront of cryptocurrency adoption in the Western Hemisphere, driven by a staggering 276% annual inflation rate. The July 9 report highlighted that out of 130 million visitors to 55 of the largest exchanges globally, 2.5 million were from Argentina.
However, during a panel session at the Web Summit Qatar on Feb. 27, Juan Pablo Ortega, co-founder and CEO of online payment platform Yuno said that in regions like Argentina, there is a profound distrust towards banks. That leads to some locals storing their cash physically. Instead of using wire transfers, people often visit the bank to withdraw all their cash and make large purchases, such as buying a house, with cash.
Ortega noted that he is beginning to witness a financial inclusion “revolution” driven by fintech firms in Latin America, Asia, and parts of Africa, despite ongoing challenges. He emphasized that for true inclusion to occur, regulators must first amend the laws, followed by efforts from companies and fintechs to rebuild consumer trust.
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