MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor backpedaled on his comment that big banks should take custody of Bitcoin following a torrent of backlash from the crypto community.&nbsp;
“I support self-custody for those willing and able, the right to <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/balancing-crypto-security-convenience-jameson-lopp-casa" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">self-custody</a> for all, and freedom to choose the form of custody and custodian for individuals and institutions globally,” Saylor <a href="https://x.com/saylor/status/1849132234692833436" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">declared</a> in a post on X on Oct. 23.
Saylor has been taking heat from the crypto community, including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, after calling out “paranoid crypto-anarchists” in a recent <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/michael-saylor-u-turn-self-custody-sparks-criticism" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">interview</a>.
At the same time, he suggested that Bitcoin holders should trust their assets to “too big to fail” banks that are “engineered to be custodians of financial assets.”
“Bitcoin benefits from all forms of investment by all types of entities, and should welcome everyone,” Saylor added as part of his apparent redemption post on X.&nbsp;
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 <img alt="Self Custody, Michael Saylor" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-10/0192bc70-3a1c-7861-90f9-50529533c108" title="">
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 Source: <a href="https://x.com/saylor/status/1849132234692833436" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">Michael Saylor</a>
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VanEck adviser Gabor Gurbacs responded, saying this shouldn’t be a controversial position, “just common sense.”
Dash marketer Joel Valenzuela said it was “capitulation,” adding that Saylor showed his “true colors.”
The Oct. 21 interview sparked debate about <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/explained/various-forms-of-bitcoin-custody-explained" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">self-custody</a> but also enraged Bitcoiners such as Samson Mow, who <a href="https://x.com/Excellion/status/1848753505047130311" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">mocked</a> the “crypto-anarchist” label.
On Oct. 23, Max Keiser <a href="https://x.com/maxkeiser/status/1849125157887263128" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">said</a>: “The recent comments attacking self-custody demonstrate a regressive tendency to favor the legacy, centralized banking crooks that Bitcoin fixes.”
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 <img alt="Self Custody, Michael Saylor" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2024-10/0192bc70-bbac-7fef-87ef-52483b123eaf" title="">
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 Backlash from industry influencers. Source: <a href="https://x.com/WeissCrypto/status/1849182758045655484" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">Weiss Crypto</a>&nbsp;
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Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/saylor-comments-big-bank-btc-custody-batshit-insane-vitalik-buterin" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">Saylor’s comments on big bank BTC custody are ‘batshit insane’ — Buterin</a>
On Oct. 23, the CEO of hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger, Pascal Gauthier, <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/if-not-self-custody-then-why-crypto-ledger-ceo" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">told Cointelegraph</a>, “There is no crypto without self-custody, so it’s a bit of a moot point if all coins go to an ETF or an exchange,” while plugging his products at a blockchain event in Dubai.&nbsp;
Still, this method of self-custody doesn’t come without risk, as the company was hacked in 2020, resulting in a massive data breach and hundreds of thousands of Ledger customers’ personal details being <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/ledger-data-leak-a-simple-mistake-exposed-270k-crypto-wallet-buyers" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">sold on the dark web</a>, leading to a wave of <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/phishing-resistant-mfa-how-to-protect-crypto-assets" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">phishing</a> attacks that is <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/ledger-users-targeted-malicious-clear-signing-phishing-email" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">still going on</a> today.&nbsp;
Magazine: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/solana-champion-mert-mumtaz-fud-sol-most-helius/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">The rise of Mert Mumtaz: ‘I probably FUD Solana the most out of anybody’</a>

Bitcoin bull Michael Saylor reverses remarks on self-custody after backlash

Cointelegraph

Other articles published on Oct 24, 2024

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