by JPMorgan planning to allow large institutional clients to use their Bitcoin and Ethereum holdings as collateral for loans by the end of this year. This is a pretty massive change for a bank whose CEO, Jamie Dimoncalled Bitcoin a “fashionable fraud” and a “pet stone.”
THE program will operate globally and use a third-party custodian to hold crypto tokens securely. This builds on JPMorgan’s earlier decision to accept crypto ETFs as collateral, but it goes much further.
What makes this crazy is how quickly crypto is being integrated into the core financial system. Bitcoin has recovered in 2025 and the Trump administration has removed a number of regulatory hurdles, so that big banks are finally treating digital assets as legitimate collateral, the same way they would accept stocks, bonds or gold.
Dimon has softened his stance a bit lately. At an investor conference in May, he said: “I don’t think we should smoke, but I defend your right to smoke. I defend your right to buy Bitcoin; go ahead.” Still skeptical, but at least grateful that people want it.
JPMorgan is not alone either. Morgan Stanley, State Street, Bank of New York Mellon and Fidelity are all getting into crypto services. Morgan Stanley even launching crypto access for retail customers on E*Trade in early 2026.
JPMorgan actually explored Bitcoin lending in 2022, but shelved it. Now, with easing regulations and growing customer demand, they’re bringing it back.
Conclusion
JPMorgan plans to accept Bitcoin and Ethereum as loan collateral for institutional clients by the end of the year, marking a major shift in crypto mainstreaming despite CEO Dimon’s historic skepticism.
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