The US Federal Reserve has withdrawn guidelines that severely limited banks’ activities in the crypto sector. This removes an important obstacle that has blocked many crypto services in advance since 2023. This means that the anti-crypto policy of the gatekeeper of the American banking system is increasingly coming to an end.
End of hard crypto brake
The Federal Reserve (Fed) announced on Wednesday that it has scrapped a strict policy document from 2023 and replaced it with a more flexible approach. At the time, there was a “strong suspicion” against so-called new activities at state-owned banks, including many crypto activities. According to the central bank, its view of the risks has now changed.
In 2023, the Fed decided that state-owned banks it controlled could only engage in activities that were also explicitly permitted for national banks. This mainly affected the crypto sector. Things like keeping bitcoin on the balance sheet or issuing stablecoins, cryptos linked to fiat money (such as the dollar), became virtually impossible in practice.
“In 2023, the policy statement limited state-owned banks to the same activities as other regulators allow,” the Fed wrote. “Since then, the financial system and our understanding of innovative products and services have evolved.”
Under the new 2025 policy, insured state banks with FDIC deposit insurance remain subject to strict rules. Uninsured state-owned banks may now request permission on a case-by-case basis to engage in activities that were previously not permitted.
Builds on decision from June
In June, the Fed decided that regulators may no longer take so-called reputation risk into account when auditing banks. That vague term was used for years to indirectly keep crypto companies out of the banking system.
By removing reputational risk, regulators now had to focus on concrete financial risks. The withdrawal of the 2023 crypto guidelines is now seen as the next step in a broader change in Washington.
President Donald Trump openly speaks positively about the sector and, together with his family, is also deeply involved in the sector. He makes no secret of his desire to make the United States the ‘crypto capital of the world’.
Although the Fed is formally independent, the relaxations are striking after years of strict policy following the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. Earlier this year, the central bank also stopped a special supervision program for crypto banks.
Source: https://newsbit.nl/amerikaanse-centrale-bank-heeft-goed-nieuws-voor-crypto/
