Bank of America Admits the Obvious About Cryptocurrency

Well, if the cat wasn’t out of the bag before this, it is now. On February 22, 2018, Bank of America made some startling (if not obvious) statements about digital currencies, including cryptocurrencies, in a filing provided to the SEC. 

“Clients may choose to conduct business with other market participants who engage in business or offer products in areas we deem speculative or risky, such as cryptocurrencies,” the bank said in the filing. “The widespread adoption of new technologies, including internet services, cryptocurrencies and payment systems, could require substantial expenditures to modify or adapt our existing products and services,” it said. “Emerging technologies, such as cryptocurrencies, could limit our ability to track the movement of funds. Our ability to comply with these laws is dependent on our ability to improve detection and reporting capabilities and reduce variation in control processes and oversight accountability.” 

Cryptocurrency is at an interesting crossroads. On the one hand, crypto has outperformed even the wildest expectations for it as an asset class thus far. However, it will never perform to its full potential until it develops far wider acceptance as a payment method in the larger regulated economy. Instead of viewing cryptocurrency as a threat, larger corporations should be examining how they can be the first to bring this new, volatile asset class “mainstream”.