During the bank's earnings call on Tuesday, JPMorgan CFO Jeremy Barnum warned that stablecoins could become a tool for regulatory arbitrage unless they are held to the same strict oversight and consumer protection standards as traditional bank deposits.
JPMorgan CEO, Jamie Dimon, warned investors in his latest annual letter that the bank must accelerate its efforts in blockchain technology to meet mounting competition from the crypto sector. Dimon told shareholders that a “whole new set of competitors” has emerged around blockchain-based products — including stablecoins, smart contracts, and broader tokenization — and that the bank needs to “roll out our own blockchain technology” to defend its market position. JPMorgan Doubles Down On Crypto The call to action comes as the US regulatory landscape for crypto undergoes notable shifts and traditional financial institutions increasingly adopt decentralized technology. JPMorgan is not starting from scratch: the firm introduced JPM Coin on a permissioned blockchain in 2019 and has continued to build capabilities through its Kinexys blockchain unit, which focuses on tokenization and payments. The bank has also been involved in experiments on permissionless chains; executives from JPMorgan’s Commercial and Investment Banking units recently pointed to the bank’s role in a 2025 US commercial paper issuance on Solana (SOL) for Galaxy Digital Holdings as a sign of broader exploration. Related Reading: Ethereum (ETH) Outlook: $2,500 Break Could Trigger Major Rally — Expert’s Price Scenarios Dimon’s stance toward crypto has evolved visibly over the past year. Once a vocal skeptic, he publicly acknowledged last year that he has become “a believer in stablecoins,” and later reiterated that “blockchain is real,” predicting it would displace elements of the traditional financial system. JPMorgan has already ramped up its internal crypto activity. In a separate investor note, the co‑CEOs of the bank’s Commercial and Investment Banking division reported that transactions on JPMorgan’s blockchain-based products have expanded roughly thirtyfold since 2023. At the same time, JPMorgan and other major banks have been active in shaping regulatory outcomes. The banking industry has pressed to alter provisions of the GENIUS Act and the anticipated CLARITY Act, seeking to prevent what they call a regulatory “loophole” that might allow stablecoin issuers to offer yield. Banks’ Push To Bar Stablecoin Rewards Banks argue that yield-bearing stablecoins could serve as substitutes for deposit accounts, posing a risk to their deposit bases and potentially destabilizing lending. Yet, those concerns were challenged on Wednesday by a new analysis from the White House Council of Economic Advisers. Using a model calibrated to current market conditions, the report found that banning stablecoin yields would have only a marginal effect on deposit flight from banks. Specifically, it estimated that eliminating stablecoin yield would raise bank lending by roughly $2.1 billion — about 0.02% of total loans — while imposing an estimated $800 million net welfare loss on consumers, suggesting the costs could outweigh any systemic benefits. Related Reading: FDIC Advances Rulemaking For GENIUS Act: New Framework For Stablecoin Issuers The study also tested a worst‑case scenario in which stablecoins pose a much larger threat to lending, but that outcome required assumptions — such as zero excess reserves and a major shift in Federal Reserve policy — that do not reflect present conditions. It remains uncertain whether the White House analysis will shift negotiations between banks and the crypto industry over whether yield and rewards should be permitted on stablecoins. Those involved in the talks have largely remained silent over the past two weeks amid Congress’s Easter recess. However, two sources familiar with the discussions told Crypto In America that they remain cautiously optimistic that the talks are progressing. Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
Digital asset inflows totaled $11 billion in Q1, as institutional demand and ETF outflows left corporate buyers and venture capital as the primary sources of funding.
Earlier this year, JPMorgan expected flows to rise further in 2026 after a record inflow of nearly $130 billion in 2025.
Crypto pundit X Finance Bull has explained how XRP is positioned to absorb a share of the $100 trillion in assets that the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has in custody. He notably mentioned Ripple and the role the crypto firm is playing in making this possible for XRP. How XRP Is Positioned To Take A Share of DTCC’s $100 Trillion Assets In an X post, X Finance Bull noted that in 2025, DTCC filed patents that named Ripple and the XRP Ledger as compatible infrastructure for tokenized finance. Following that, Ripple acquired Hidden Road, a prime brokerage that clears $3 trillion annually for over 300 institutional clients, for $1.25 billion. Related Reading: Why SWIFT’s Latest Global Payments Infrastructure Is Bullish For XRP Holders The pundit then mentioned that earlier this month, Hidden Road, which is now Ripple Prime, was added to the DTCC’s NSCC directory. He noted that this is the same clearing infrastructure used by Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan. X Finance Bull added that no crypto company has ever achieved this feat, with Ripple now embedded inside Wall Street’s machinery. The pundit believes that these developments position XRP to gain a share of DTCC’s custody assets. X Finance Bull noted that the tokenization market is projected to hit between $16 and $30 trillion by 2030. Meanwhile, the DTCC’s director has spoken about a $100 trillion tokenization goal. He added that Ripple is inside the system and alleged that there are stated plans to migrate post-trade activity to the XRP Ledger. The pundit stated that noting that is guaranteed for XRP, but that the positioning is undeniable. In line with this, he remarked that XRP holders aren’t betting on hype but on infrastructure that is already built from the inside out. Ripple Working To Improve XRP Ledger’s Security Ripple has unveiled new plans to improve the XRP Ledger’s security as more institutions adopt the network and tokenize real-world assets on it. Ripple’s Head of Engineering, Ayo Akinyele, announced in an X post that they are taking a more proactive, AI-driven approach to strengthen the network’s security. Related Reading: Why The XRP Supply In The Billions Is Not A Problem This approach will include AI-assisted testing across the development lifecycle, a dedicated red team, and higher standards for how they evaluate changes before they go live. The Ripple executive noted that the goal is to continuously strengthen the XRP Ledger’s reliability as the network scales to support global payments, tokenized assets, and institutional use cases. It is worth noting that the XRP Ledger currently ranks 8th in tokenized RWA, with a total tokenized value of $1.9 billion on the network, according to RWA.xyz. Ripple has continued to secure partnerships with institutions that it has onboarded to tokenize their financial products on the network. At the time of writing, the XRP price is trading at around $1.36, down over 2% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Featured image from Adobe Stock, chart from Tradingview.com
The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.
Bitcoin has held up better than gold and silver during the Iran war, with signs of inflows and rising activity, JPMorgan analysts said.
Ripple is being viewed as a key player in the evolving push toward tokenized financial markets, as the New York Stock Exchange advances its plans to bring traditional assets onto blockchain rails. This development signals a broader shift on Wall Street, where traditional infrastructure is beginning to intersect with blockchain-driven innovation, settlement layer, and transition from legacy systems to faster and more transparent digital infrastructure. How Ripple Is Positioned At The Core Of Financial Transformation Wall Street has just surrendered to Ripple, as the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) takes a decisive step to launch the tokenized securities era. Crypto analyst Pumpius has revealed on X that the exchange overseeing $30 trillion in market capitalization has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Securitize. Related Reading: Ripple Pushes XRP Global With Multi-Continent Expansion Drive They named it the first official transfer agent allowed to mint blockchain native securities on its upcoming NYSE digital trading platform. However, this infrastructure is being built for all activity to move on-chain. The shift will be bullish for XRP and Ripple because, for years, the firm has long focused on tokenizing real-world assets and building institutional-grade blockchain rails. Within that framework, XRP was built as the neutral bridge asset for value transfer in a tokenized world, facilitating fast, low-cost, and regulatory-friendly transactions that are already battle-tested by banks. While narrative was speculating, Ripple was positioning XRP as the liquidity engine that allows tokenized securities to move across borders and chains without friction. Furthermore, Pumpius argues that adding the NYSE and Securitize will result in the expansion of tokenized equities. Meanwhile, major players such as BlackRock, JPMorgan, and SWIFT continue to explore tokenization and blockchain settlement, and the entire $100 trillion real-world assets market needs a global settlement layer. Here, XRP sits between this shift with On-Demand Liquidity (ODL), RLUSD, and partnerships that have reached the world’s biggest financial institutions. Pumpius emphasized that XRP might be the bridge they will use when the first tokenized Apple or BlackRock ETF settles on-chain and needs instant global rails. Ripple Custody Bridges Traditional Finance And Blockchain The February 2026 report reveals how institutions are actively leveraging Ripple Custody. An analyst known as SMQKE on X noted that Ripple Custody supported DZ Bank in launching a digital custody service for crypto securities in under 10 months, through the deployment of a robust digital asset infrastructure. Related Reading: Ripple’s New Whitepaper Shows What’s Coming For XRP Meanwhile, at the core of these solutions are XRP and Ripple’s stablecoin RLUSD. With these capabilities, financial institutions across over 20 jurisdictions have been able to develop, expand, and scale digital asset business models with confidence. Meanwhile, Ripple Custody is now used across these jurisdictions, and XRP and RLUSD are allowed to support the entire lifecycle of a tokenized asset. Featured image from Freepik, chart from Tradingview.com
Traction in such decentralized exchanges is likely to grow over time and extend beyond commodities to other assets, JPMorgan said.
GLD has seen outflows of about 2.7% of assets, while IBIT has seen inflows of around 1.5% of assets since the war erupted, analysts said.
JPMorgan allegedly served as the “exclusive vehicle” for a $328 million crypto Ponzi, funneling $253 million into Goliath Ventures.
The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.
The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.
JPMorgan's CEO argued that yield-bearing stablecoins should face the same regulatory requirements as bank deposits amid policy negotiations.
The crypto industry has spent years asking Washington for clear rules. It may be getting closer to an answer. JPMorgan analysts are now predicting that the Clarity Act — a sweeping bill designed to set formal ground rules for how digital assets are regulated in the US — will be signed into law by the middle of this year. If this timeline holds, it could prove to be one of the biggest changes in crypto policy within the US. Related Reading: Bitcoin In The Line Of Fire: Price Dips To $63k As US, Israel Launch Strikes On Iran What The Clarity Act Actually Does At its heart, this is a bill about structure. The reality is that currently, there is a lack of a unified structure or framework regarding how crypto is classified or traded within the US. Different bodies have taken different stances on the issue, leaving businesses to wonder what is or isn’t allowed. The Clarity Act aims to fix that by establishing a clear set of rules that applies across the board — covering everything from how tokens are categorized to which regulatory bodies have authority over them. A JPMorgan Chase report says the U.S. CLARITY Act could pass by mid-year and serve as a second-half catalyst, bringing regulatory clarity, ending “regulation by enforcement,” boosting tokenization, and supporting institutional adoption. Key debates involve stablecoin yield… — Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) March 2, 2026 According to JPMorgan’s team of analysts, led by managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, the bill’s approval could act as a meaningful turning point for the broader crypto market. Reports say the bank believes the legislation may help push prices upward in the second half of 2026, even as sentiment across crypto markets remains negative right now. The bank’s view is that regulatory certainty, once delivered, tends to attract institutional money that has been sitting on the sidelines. But the bill is not there yet. Two unresolved disputes have kept it from moving forward. The first involves stablecoins — digital currencies pegged to traditional assets like the US dollar. Crypto firms want stablecoin holders to be able to earn rewards on their holdings, similar to interest. Banks are pushing back hard, arguing that offering those returns would pull customer deposits away from conventional financial institutions and undermine the broader banking system. A Political Fight Is Slowing Things Down The second obstacle is a bit more political in nature, as democratic lawmakers have been advocating for a clause to be included in the bill, which would prohibit senior government officials, including US President, Donald Trump, and his family, from owning any financial interest in crypto projects. The provision is widely seen as a direct reference to Trump, whose family has been linked to various crypto ventures. The White House has reportedly hosted several meetings to work through these disagreements, but no resolution has been reached. Related Reading: Crypto’s Quietest Month In Nearly A Year — But Hackers Haven’t Gone Away A March 1 deadline that had been floated as a possible target for progress came and went without any meaningful announcement. Reports note that industry observers had already signaled weeks in advance that the deadline was unlikely to produce results, and that turned out to be accurate. Negotiations are ongoing, though the pace has frustrated those who were hoping for a faster resolution. Featured image from Vecteezy, chart from TradingView
The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.
Even as crypto sentiment remains weak, JPMorgan analysts see the possible mid-year approval of U.S. market structure legislation as a positive catalyst.
JPMorgan said the long-awaited Clarity Act would bring regulatory clarity, boost institutional participation and accelerate tokenization across U.S. crypto markets.
The Hong Kong-based stablecoin payments firm RedotPay is reportedly exploring a U.S. IPO that could raise over $1 billion, per Bloomberg.
BlackRock, Apollo, and Citadel have acquired or agreed to acquire DeFi tokens. Here’s why and what it really signals.
Ethereum’s tokenized real-world asset market cap has topped $17 billion, up nearly 315% year over year as more TradFi giants move onchain.
Lack of privacy is a barrier to both everyday and institutional use of crypto and blockchain technology, CZ and institutions argue.
JPMorgan’s bitcoin production cost estimate, which has served as a support level, has fallen to $77,000 from $90,000.
The following article is adapted from The Block’s newsletter, The Daily, which comes out on weekday afternoons.
JPMorgan and Compass Point were among the sell-side teams trimming price targets on HOOD.
Bitcoin’s role in big-money talks has shifted in recent weeks. Reports say analysts at JPMorgan now see Bitcoin as more attractive than gold for long-term investors once you adjust how risk is counted. That’s a notable twist given how deeply gold has been ingrained as the go-to safe haven for decades. Related Reading: Russia’s Biggest Exchange To Launch XRP Indices And Futures Gold’s climb has been hard to ignore. After swinging wildly, gold prices rallied back to around $5,000 per ounce following a sharp sell-off earlier in February, with major banks projecting further strength later in 2026. This rebound came after gold reached record highs, and JPMorgan even forecasts it could hit roughly $6,300 per ounce by year-end. At the same time, Bitcoin’s own numbers have looked shaky. Since peaking above $126,000, Bitcoin has slid nearly 50%, settling nearer $65,000-$70,000 in early February. That plunge left BTC below its estimated production cost of around $87,000, according to analysts. A Bridge Between Price And Risk Reports say the real math behind JPMorgan’s view isn’t just about where these assets sit today. It’s about how wild their price swings have been. The soaring price came with rising unpredictability — gold’s volatility has spiked as markets reacted to geopolitical upheaval and macroeconomic moves. Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s volatility has softened from its usual extremes. This convergence shows up in what’s called the bitcoin-to-gold volatility ratio. According to JPMorgan, that ratio has plunged to around 1.5, a record low. On its face, that means Bitcoin is carrying only about 1.5 times the risk of gold — tighter than historical norms. That shift makes risk-adjusted returns more competitive for BTC. Under this framework, analysts figure Bitcoin’s market capitalization would have to rise dramatically to match the roughly $8 trillion private sector investment held in gold. If that happened, implied models point to Bitcoin prices near $266,000. JPMorgan says that is not an expected short-term target, but the theoretical math illustrates how much room exists if sentiment changes. Market Movements Tell Another Story In the broader market, tokens like XRP, Ethereum, and Solana have been caught up in the same risk sell-off that clipped Bitcoin. These cryptos have seen sharp drops in recent sessions as traders fled riskier bets, testing buying interest and liquidity conditions. Moves like these show that the relative calm in volatility isn’t guaranteed to last, especially when markets tighten. Gold’s oscillations have also tested investor nerves. Earlier in 2026, gold endured some of its most extreme swings ever — including double-digit plunges and rebounds that challenged its reputation as the “stable” safe haven. But the rebound to near $5,000 per ounce underlines demand from defensive buyers. Related Reading: Polygon Hits $3.50 Billion In Payments As Crypto Activity Expands What Investors Are Weighing Based on reports, JPMorgan’s stance doesn’t say Bitcoin will instantly replace gold in portfolios. Instead, analysts are noting how relative risk and reward are being measured today. Bitcoin’s lower recent volatility plus its huge theoretical upside based on gold’s market size make it a compelling candidate for some long-range thinking. Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
That target is “unrealistic” this year, but possible “over the long term” once negative sentiment reverses, according to the analysts.
Shares of mining companies rose last month despite softer bitcoin prices as storms cut the network hashrate and AI optimism grew, the bank said.
Indeed, since the JPMorgan report was published on Wednesday, both silver and gold have pulled back from recent highs.
Gold and other hard assets are rallying on dollar weakness, but bitcoin is lagging as markets continue to treat it as a liquidity-sensitive risk asset.