Jerome Powell, president of the United States Federal Reserve (Fed), said banks can serve cryptocurrency customers as long as they effectively manage the risks involved.

The statement was made after the Fed's decision, the US Central Bank, for maintaining the interest rate at 4.25% to 4.5%. This occurred after three consecutive cuts in the rates at the end of 2024.

Fed changes radically posture and says banks can serve crypto customers

During conference Press on Wednesday (29), Powell answered questions about the potential impact of speculation on the cryptocurrency market, on financial stability and the role in the portfolios of families. He explained that the role of the Fed is to supervise the banks.

Banks are perfectly able to serve crypto customers as long as they understand and can manage the risks and be safe, Powell replied.

Under criticism, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently revoked the Accounting Bulletin (SAB) Staff 121. This regulation previously discouraged banks to offer custody services to digital assets.

With SAB 121 now replaced by SAB 122, banks may be flexible to offer crypto custody services. This change can encourage broader adoption and further integrate cryptocurrencies into traditional financial systems.

Powell emphasized that many of the banks that the federal reserve supervision are already involved in crypto activities. However, he acknowledged that the regulatory threshold for banks to enter this space remains high.

He explained that banks should be cautious when dealing with new asset classes such as cryptocurrencies. This is especially true when operating within the federal security network, including deposit insurance.

We are not against innovation, and we certainly do not want to take actions that lead banks to end customers who are perfectly legal just for excess risk aversion, Powell added.

Crypto goes to the mainstream!

The cryptian community reacted positively to Powell's statements. Many see this as a sign of the growing acceptance of cryptocurrencies in the traditional financial world.

The banks will be a big crypton catalyst in 2025. It was mainstream starting, posted Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley in the X (former Twitter).

The news comes amid a remarkable increase in the price of Bitcoin. After a difficult beginning of the week, the BTC recovered the impulse. At the time of publication, it was negotiated at US $ 105,066, representing gains of 2.24% on the last day.

Crypto analyst Marty Party attributed the increase in Powell's statement in the last post at X.

IMO: This implies that #fdic will hold on to cry clients maintained by banks, he wrote.

However, not all in the banking sector are convinced of Powell's statements. Fox Business reporter Eleanor Terrett shared an anecdote from a source on a large bank that ruled out Powell's optimism.

Yes, it's like saying, I wouldn't do that, but you make your own decisions, these Terrett.

Terrett also explained that the banker was not convinced by Powell's statement that banks were totally able to do business with crypto customers. The banker emphasized that although they liked to work with crypto customers, regulatory challenges made it extremely difficult for banks to get involved with this sector.