Citigroup (NYSE:C) is looking for professionals with a background in Bitcoin, to beef up their anti-money laundering team.
The financial services company has posted ads on LinkedIn (NYSE:LNKD), looking for a vice president and senior vice president for its anti-money laundering division. Among the required qualifications for the posts, Citigroup lists “knowledge of cryptocurrency and bitcoin monitoring”; in addition, a “Bitcoin Professional Certification” (BPC) has been listed as a “plus” for both positions.
BPC appears to be a rather obscure certification – searches on LinkedIn only yield two results (both of which are postings by Citigroup), and the qualification is only offered by a small handful of organizations, among them the Cryptocurrency Certification Consortium, which grants Bitcoin certification to individuals who complete a two year course and take a 20-minute test.
Crypto-related risks are not the only thing on Citigroup’s agenda. As per the job ad, the senior vice president will be required to “support the Global Head of AML Monitoring Risk Management-Emerging Risk by identifying, analyzing, and implementing AML transaction monitoring risk programs related to developments in cybersecurity, cryptocurrency and emerging payment technologies, products and methods”.
However, while monitoring and deterring crypto-related risks is just one part of the overall job responsibilities, according to DASH Core CEO Ryan Taylor the requirement for a Bitcoin certification, coupled with the “intentionally vague” tone of the ads, suggests that Citigroup is either “identifying risk to eliminate certain profiles” or preparing to identify “new opportunities in the [crypto] space at a later point”.
According to past statements, Citigroup appears to have adopted a markedly negative stance on cryptocurrencies. Earlier this year, Citi was one of several banks that banned customers from buying cryptocurrencies with their credit cards. In addition, last year, Citigroup CEO Michael Corbat stated that the company was “not interested” in Bitcoin.
However, despite their apparent lack of interest in cryptocurrencies, Citigroup is one among a host of banks and financial institutions which are deeply interested in blockchain technology. Last year, a CB Insights report revealed that Citigroup was among the biggest investors in blockchain-related companies and projects.
This article appeared first on Cryptovest