Canada's Wealthsimple aims for real-world cryptocurrency use as it looks beyond trading

FILE PHOTO: People walk by a "Bitcoin Decentral" sign in Toronto, May 8, 2014. REUTERS/Mark Blinch/File Photo

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian online brokerage Wealthsimple wants to chart a future enabling the real-world use of cryptocurrencies rather than simply facilitating trading, but is likely to face unexpected costs and uncertain regulatory terrain along the way.

Launched in 2014 as a stock-trading platform, Wealthsimple currently has C$15 billion ($11.9 billion) in assets. It added cryptocurrency trading in August 2020 with Bitcoin and Ethereum, and has since added more coins, hosted wallets and inward transfer capabilities, and has said it intends to enable withdrawals.