Opinion

The Bitcoin Banking Battle Heats Up

Banks are moving into crypto and crypto companies are trying to become banks, so how does it all play out?

By Nathaniel Whittemore

Dec 12, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. UTC

Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 10:42 a.m. UTC

By Nathaniel Whittemore

Dec 12, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. UTCUpdated Sep 14, 2021 at 10:42 a.m. UTC

Banking, finance, economy, bitcoin concept illustration, related to the topic of crypto companies getting into banking and visa versa.

By Nathaniel Whittemore

Dec 12, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. UTCUpdated Sep 14, 2021 at 10:42 a.m. UTC

Banks are moving into crypto and crypto companies are trying to become banks, so how does it all play out?

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This episode is sponsored by Crypto.com, Nexo.io and this week’s special product launch LVL.co.

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On this edition of the weekly recap, NLW looks at the brewing battle to be the bitcoin and crypto bank of the future. He looks at three stories reporting banks getting into crypto (BBVA, Standard Chartered and DBS) as well as crypto companies applying to become banks. Finally, he examines why this is happening right now, and what are the true stakes of the game.

This week on The Breakdown:

Monday | China’s Latest Digital Currency Trial Is Its Most Important Yet
Tuesday | A De Facto Bitcoin ETF? MicroStrategy Is Raising $400M to Buy More BTC
Wednesday | The Most Important Trends and People Shaping Crypto 2020, With Ryan Selkis
Thursday | SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce on a Bitcoin ETF, Custody Rules and What’s Next for the SEC
Friday | Why a Massive 169-Year-Old Insurance Company Just Bought $100M in Bitcoin

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Nathaniel Whittemore