Bitcoin Gets Nod from JPMorgan but Dimon Refuses to Custody It

This move is a major shift for Dimon, who is well known as a long-time crypto critic, and brings JPMorgan in line with competitors like Morgan Stanley. Meanwhile, corporate interest in Bitcoin continues to rise as Canadian biotech firm Quantum Biopharma increased its crypto holdings to $4.5 million and plans to stake assets for additional yield. In Asia, Basel Medical also plans to acquire $1 billion in Bitcoin. Separately, Chinese printer company Procolored is facing backlash for distributing malware-infected drivers that stole almost $1 million in Bitcoin.

JPMorgan to Open Bitcoin Access to Clients

Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan Chase, announced a shift in the bank’s stance toward Bitcoin. Speaking at JPMorgan’s annual investor day on May 19, Dimon revealed that the bank will soon allow its clients to buy Bitcoin, although it will not offer custody services for the cryptocurrency. Instead, JPMorgan plans to include Bitcoin holdings in client statements without directly managing or storing the asset. “We are going to allow you to buy it,” Dimon said. “We’re not going to custody it. We’re going to put it in statements for clients.”

According to a CNBC report, JPMorgan intends to offer clients access to spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which gained a lot of traction in the US since their launch in January of 2024. These products have already attracted close to $42 billion in aggregate inflows, indicating a strong appetite among investors. Until now, JPMorgan's crypto exposure was largely limited to futures-based products rather than direct investments in Bitcoin.