Crypto’s Banking Woes Are Not Over

The crypto world has gotten some early Christmas presents. The Securities and Exchange Commission has dismissed some Biden-era lawsuits, and the industry has helped push through landmark stablecoin legislation. Crypto companies have also made strides on a lingering problem: access to the mainstream financial system. But that is still a bottleneck for the industry.

First, the wins. This month, Circle and Ripple were among five crypto firms that won national trust charters from a federal banking regulator. Texas billionaire banker Andy Beal is shifting the focus of one of the banks he owns to crypto. And Erebor Bank, backed by Peter Thiel and Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey, plans to open its door to clients including crypto firms as soon as late January—and will have another $350 million in VC funding to expand, Axios reported. Even the Federal Reserve may open up access to its payment system to crypto firms.