Sen Lummis says Fed skinny master accounts could end crypto debanking

Cynthia Lummis, a Republican United States Senator from Wyoming who is a strong advocate of crypto, noted that the new suggestion that Christopher Waller, an American economist serving as a Governor on the Board of Governors of the US Federal Reserve System, submitted to make “skinny” master accounts available for crypto firms would halt debanking under Operation Chokepoint 2.0. 

Lummis made this statement after Waller released his new proposal to the public during the Payments Innovation Conference held in October of this year. 

According to reports, the Governor claimed that this suggestion would enable crypto and fintech startups, including banks that only conduct payment activities, to obtain accounts at the Federal Reserve, just like traditional banks’ “master accounts.” However, it was confirmed that this access would involve certain restrictions.

Senator Lummis sparks hope for smooth operations in the crypto ecosystem soon 

Waller’s suggestion ignited heated discussions in the crypto ecosystem. To address this controversy, Senator Lummis issued a statement clarifying the proposal. In the statement, Lummis acknowledged that, “Governor Waller’s skinny master account idea ends Operation Chokepoint 2.0 and paves the way for real payment innovations. This means faster payments, lower costs, and better security — this is how we can responsibly create the future.” 

Earlier, Operation Chokepoint 2.0 was perceived as a strategic approach aimed at hindering banking services, particularly for crypto firms and their founders. To support this claim, Marc Andreessen, a highly influential venture capitalist and staunch advocate for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, asserted that more than thirty tech founders were blocked from accessing banking services in the event of this operation. 

Meanwhile, reliable sources indicate that Waller’s new proposal marks a significant shift in how officials in the United States view digital assets and other emerging fintech startups. At this point, they perceive cryptocurrencies as essential aspects of the payment system and the future of finance.

What still shocked the entire crypto community was the move to deny crypto firms access to banking services that took place even after US President Donald Trump issued an executive order in August instructing banks not to block services to Americans and businesses without a legitimate reason.

The executive order further directed banking regulators based in the US, including the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), to identify certain banks and financial institutions that had participated in debanking activities. To demonstrate the intense nature of the situation, reports highlighted that the order illustrated the possibility of these institutions facing serious fines or other forms of penalties.

Nonetheless, even with these efforts in place and Trump’s pro-crypto stance, sources close to the matter raised concerns that crypto executives, project creators, and Web3 firms are still subject to debanking issues.

Analysts note an increasing debanking attempt impacting crypto firms

Banks’ decision to block crypto companies from accessing banking services has become a growing concern in the crypto industry. This trend was noticed when crypto leaders began to report incidents of being victims of such attempts. An example is Jack Mallers, the CEO of the Bitcoin payment company Strike. 

Mallers claimed that JPMorgan, a massive and leading global financial services firm, decided to suspend its banking services in November without providing a valid reason for doing so.

In a separate X post, the CEO highlighted that the sudden decision caught him by surprise, adding that, “Every time I asked them why, they replied the same way: ‘We aren’t allowed to tell you.’

In the meantime, apart from Mallers, recent reports mentioned that JPMorgan Chase had also blocked the accounts of BlindPay and Kontigo. These venture capital-financed stablecoin startups focus on global, specifically Latin American, payments infrastructure in December. Following this move, the largest bank in the US by assets alleged that it made this decision after discovering that these firms were connected to sanctioned areas as the justification. 

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