The report from London’s City A.M. newspaper, citing an unnamed “insider“, sent the world’s biggest cryptocurrency up as much as 14.5% before it trimmed gains to last trade 6% higher at $37,684.04. A spokesperson from Amazon said:

“Notwithstanding our interest in the space, the speculation that has ensued around our specific plans for cryptocurrencies is not true. We remain focused on exploring what this could look like for customers shopping on Amazon.”

The company on July 22 posted a job opening for a digital currency and blockchain product lead.

A growing number of companies have started to accept virtual currencies for payment, bringing an asset class shunned by major financial institutions until a few years ago closer to the mainstream.

Last week, Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said the electric-car maker will most likely restart accepting bitcoin as payments once it conducts due diligence on the amount of renewable energy used to mine the currency.

• Improving security to missile-proof level. Yes, customers’ data, identities, and money are not a minor thing, and they are at risk with every login or transaction. Security bullet-proof is not enough. Hackers won’t quit, but clear and legal guarantees and better security must be offered to clients. If crimes like stealing sensitive data, frauds derived from the malicious use of such data, stealing of money, etc. keep affecting customers, it will be hard to make them jump on-board a digital-only bank. Especially the older generations.
• Getting customers’ trust. Disruptive technology is not easy to digest. Especially when your pension, savings, and money in general, is at risk. Security in the terms we described is totally necessary for customers to trust. To accept technology requires to be trained on it and to clearly understand it; How does it work? What risks do I face? How can I protect myself to avoid risks? What kind of guarantees do I have? Customers rely a lot on the face-to-face interaction at banks; making them accept the transition to banks where everything is managed through computers, smartphones, applications, robots, chatbots, codes, passwords, clicks etc won’t be easy without offering proper guarantees of protection, legal regulation. Not only financial institutions but also governments must be involved.
• Customers’ experience. A transparent, comfortable, and friendly online experience must be offered to customers. Clear guidance must be included to execute the different bank processes customers need. Technology is astonishing. No doubt almost everything can be done through it. But there is a human factor involved that should not be forgotten. Not all customers manage digital tools with the same proficiency level. There should be ways to make them feel protected, supported. It can be really frustrating to try to solve a problem with a bot that just repeats pre-programmed answers.