JPMorgan Chase is exploring offering loans backed by clients' cryptocurrency holdings, potentially launching as early as next year with bitcoin and ethereum as collateral, the Financial Times reported on July 22, 2025. This move represents a significant shift from CEO Jamie Dimon's previous stance, who eight years ago branded bitcoin a fraud that would eventually blow up and was only useful for drug dealers and murderers, even stating he would fire any trader who traded it.
JPMorgan has already taken steps to embrace crypto with plans to begin lending against holdings in crypto exchange traded funds, but accepting actual cryptocurrency assets as collateral would be a further step, especially as rivals such as Goldman Sachs do not accept crypto as collateral. The legal framework for crypto-backed lending has evolved significantly in recent years: changes were made to the US Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) in 2022 making it viable to treat cryptocurrency as collateral, with around 30 states implementing these changes so far, including New York State senate approving the UCC changes in mid-June 2025, though the Governor has yet to sign it into law.
The move highlights how big banks and the regulated financial services industry more broadly are opening up to closer interaction with cryptocurrencies, while other major U.S. banks including Bank of America and Citibank are developing stablecoins amid a broader push for more crypto-friendly regulation in Washington. Dimon, who in May told investors that he is not a fan of the bitcoin universe, citing concerns about leverage, misuse, and money laundering issues, clarified the bank's approach: "We're going to allow you to buy it, we're not going to custody it," as the value of the global cryptocurrency market has reached $4 trillion for the first time, with investors anticipating billions of Wall Street dollars flooding into the sector after the passage of landmark US digital asset legislation.
Sources:
Ledger Insights
