Do you all remember how these seemingly elite figures on Wall Street mocked Bitcoin a few years ago? Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan famously called it a 'fraud' and even threatened to fire employees who traded Bitcoin. And what’s the result? According to the latest report from River, among the 25 largest banks in the U.S., 13 (over 52%) have quietly reached into the Bitcoin pie. This isn’t transformation; it’s clearly a case of seeing the promising growth of the chives, as the professional reapers have finally been assembled and are ready to harvest. The so-called 'financial safe haven' is merely a different place to continue collecting your tolls. Don’t think that banks entering the scene is an endorsement for the crypto world; they are here to 'tame' Bitcoin, shoving back the decentralized freedom that originally belonged to you, and putting it back into that outdated, inefficient, and expensive centralized shackles. 🤫
This report exposes Wall Street's secrets: giants including Bank of New York Mellon, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan have fully laid out custody, trading, and clearing services. Why are they entering the market? Did they suddenly realize the great ideals of Satoshi Nakamoto? Don't be silly. The truth is: after the SEC approved the spot Bitcoin ETF, this piece of fat meat is just too tempting. They found that rather than stopping retail investors from buying coins, it’s better to be the ones selling shovels. In the past, you had to worry about exchanges running away when buying coins, but now banks are confidently saying 'store it with us, it's safe.' But the cost of this 'safety' is that you have to pay custody fees, management fees, and various other miscellaneous fees. Banks excel at complicating simple things and then charging you for that complexity. This is a classic case of 'if you can't beat them, join them, and then tax them.' 💰
Seeing through the tricks of these banks is actually quite simple: their so-called 'custody services' are essentially depriving you of ownership. What’s the old saying in the crypto world? Not your keys, not your coins. After banks enter the market, your Bitcoin in the account is just a cold, hard number, and it might even just be an accounting entry on the bank's books. You think you own Bitcoin, but in reality, you only have an IOU from the bank saying 'the bank owes you Bitcoin.' Once a bank run occurs or the regulators say something, is your coin still yours? How many times have these top banks messed things up in history? Isn't the lesson from 2008 enough? Now they want to return to their old ways in the Bitcoin world, using information asymmetry and so-called 'compliance' to brainwash retail investors, making everyone think that storing coins in banks is 'safe.' This is simply the greatest irony against the spirit of crypto. 🙄
Interestingly, the layout speed of these 13 banks is much faster than you might imagine. They not only provide custody but are also deeply involved in clearing and settlement. What does this mean? It means that the pricing power of Bitcoin in the future may no longer depend on those wildly growing exchanges, but rather return to the hands of these established financial giants. They are turning Bitcoin into a financial toy that can be manipulated at will through ETFs and various derivatives. Those who expect banks to drive up the coin price, wake up! The banks are entering the market for 'volatility services,' not to make you rich. Through high selling and low buying, collecting fees, and various compliance tricks, they can squeeze every last profit from your account. This is not a 'good thing'; it is a large-scale 'institutional plunder.' 📈
Even Goldman Sachs, which once scoffed at Bitcoin, is now a welcomed guest in the crypto asset space. What does this indicate? It indicates that in front of capital, integrity is worth less than a dime. These banks are not only doing Bitcoin business but also researching how to tokenize real-world assets (RWA), essentially wanting to pack all the world's assets into their controlled private chains or managed public chains. They fear Bitcoin, an uncontrolled asset, so they must castrate it through 'bankification.' The current trend is very clear: they want to turn Bitcoin into a form of 'digital gold,' but this gold must be locked in their vaults; you can only look at it, not touch it. Want to withdraw? First fill out ten forms, then wait five working days, and finally pay a 5% service fee. What’s the difference from storing fiat? This so-called 'progress' is actually a complete regression in the crypto world. 🤡
Finally, here’s a heart-wrenching truth for you retail investors: banks are not entering the market for redemption but for parasitism. They saw that the '土狗' project Bitcoin didn't die but grew into a giant, and they rushed in to be 'guardians.' For retail investors, if you pursue the so-called sense of security by handing your coins to banks, you not only lose privacy but also lose control over the core value of Bitcoin. Don’t be brainwashed by the grand narrative of 'institutions entering the market'; they are just using a more civilized way to harvest your investment. Remember, no matter how banks in the U.S. lay out their strategies, as long as you hold the private key instead of a screenshot of the bank's app, you are truly in the market. As for those who wish to achieve financial freedom through banks, I hope you enjoy your upcoming 'management fee hell.' Wake up early, don’t wait until your account is frozen to cry. 👋
