Michael Sayler Says “Big Banks” Should Be Bitcoin’s New Custodians

MicroStrategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor spoke with CNBC about the future of Bitcoin (BTC) regulation and corporate adoption shortly after announcing a $5.3 million BTC purchase last month.

While the billionaire said that “you can't have any amount of bitcoin,” he also said that “big banks” are necessary for the wealth to reach full maturity.

Does Bitcoin Need Big Banks?

During the interview, Saylor acknowledged some of the recent crypto failures and the industry's biggest companies.

For example, Sam Bankman-Fried was on trial for allegedly stealing billions of dollars from clients while running FTX, while Binance is being targeted by authorities for supporting crypto accounts linked to Hamas terrorists.

“For the industry to move to the next level, we need to migrate to mature regulation,” Salor said. “We need big banks to be the guardians of crypto – we need Wall Street to play a role.”

The executive stressed the need for the industry to “rationalize” the hundreds of thousands of altcoins on the market and focus on Bitcoin. The billionaire views Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler as labeling most cryptocurrencies beyond Bitcoin as unregistered securities.

“Bitcoin is a wealth without a giver,” he continued. “This is a globally recognized protocol that is a product in this space.”

So far, Bitcoin's dominance has risen more than 53% this year and continues to grow. Even stablecoins are losing market share as the SEC cracks down on such offerings, including the PYUSD token launched by PayPal.

The U.S. Congress is still working on crypto-appropriate legislation to legally implement stablecoins and crypto banking services, although partisan disagreements have made progress on such issues very slow.

Should Investors Buy a Bitcoin ETF or MicroStrategy (MSTR)?

Saylor predicted that the Bitcoin ETF would generate new institutional interest as inflation contracts after bitcoin was “halved” in April and as the most anticipated position.

Until now, MicroStrategy Stock (MSTR) has served as a legitimate option for institutions to gain exposure to BTC without the approval of an official ETF. The company has been trying to collect as many coins as possible since 2020, it now holds 158,400 BTC.

While beneficial for investors, Saylor still believes MSRL stock will have a place in the market once the ETF gets the green light.

“We don't charge fees, we use intelligence, and we can generate tax-deferred bitcoin premiums for our investors,” Salor said.