After the story was published, an FDIC official challenged this — and said it would not require "divestment of crypto activities as part of any sale."
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Financial institutions that are interested in acquiring Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank have until tomorrow to put in a bid, according to reports.
But Reuters has claimed that any buyer who snaps up Signature must agree to give up all its crypto business — prompting allegations that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is trying to further isolate the digital asset markets from traditional banking.
After the story was published, an FDIC official challenged this — and said it would not require "divestment of crypto activities as part of any sale."
The corporation's chairman, Martin Gruenberg, has previously stressed that his agency wasn't trying to limit particular banking activities.
Signature Bank offered crucial infrastructure that allowed crypto businesses to offer a fiat on-ramp to their customers — and execute instantaneous transfers 24/7.
It — alongside Silvergate and SVB — were three crypto-friendly banks, and their demise has prompted firms in the sector to race to find alternatives.
Some are now beginning to look beyond the U.S. — and to areas including Switzerland, Asia and The Bahamas.
The Reuters report comes a day after a Republican congressman and a former bank regulator with deep crypto industry ties accused the FDIC of using the current crisis to "choke off digital assets."
Rep. Tom Emmer asked FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg if his agency has "instructed banks under its supervision to not provide crypto firms banking services?" — and enquired:
"Have you communicated — explicitly or implicitly — to any banks that their supervision will be more onerous in any way if they take on new (or maintain existing) digital asset clients?"
Brian Brooks, a former Coinbase executive who served as acting Comptroller of the Currency during the Trump administration, also said "it's pretty clear there has been a decision across the bank regulatory agencies… that crypto is inherently risky and needs to be extricated from the banking system."
