A Banking Crisis Is Quietly Unleashing Billions Into Crypto

Editor's note: Just a few years ago, banks shut out crypto without warning. Now, Crypto Capital editor Eric Wade says the story has flipped. As blockchain technology promises billions in annual savings, banks will adopt it – not by mandate, but by necessity.

Today, we're sharing an excerpt from the October 2025 Crypto Capital issue. In it, Eric explains how this shift could send new money into the crypto market... and put real savings back into consumers' pockets.

The breakup happened swiftly and silently.

One day in October 2022, crypto trading platform Swan Bitcoin had access to its Citibank corporate bank account. The next day, it didn't.

Thankfully, Swan had another bank account to pay its employees. Otherwise, CEO Cory Klippsten says it could have been an "existential threat."

And Swan was just one of the crypto projects that had its accounts closed without notice. Other crypto firms have had difficulties securing loans or opening accounts.

But things are changing...

We have a pro-crypto administration that wants to make the U.S. the "crypto capital of the world."

However, banks aren't going to adopt crypto just because regulators give them permission. They're going to adopt it to remain competitive. It's an economic inevitability...

Banks Can't Afford to Ignore Crypto Any Longer

Here's the math that will soon change how banks do things...

Globally, banks' annual tech outlay – what they spend on technology – is about $650 billion. These fees support a massive infrastructure of multinational companies – Visa, Mastercard, Oracle, IBM, Fiserv, fintech companies like Jack Henry and Temenos, and more.

The market value of these key suppliers easily amounts to trillions of dollars.

Like with any business, banks' overhead costs ultimately flow through to customers – in this case, through higher borrowing costs and lower interest rates on deposits.

But I estimate that about $443.5 billion of banks' annual tech outlay could move to the blockchain. We're talking about payment rails (the infrastructure that allows noncash payments to be transferred between accounts), cloud services, enterprise software, security, data management, and professional services.

The global banking industry could save $30 billion to $60 billion a year if these tech services move to the blockchain. The savings would come primarily from back-office reductions, leaner cross-border operations, compliance streamlining, and settlement efficiency gains.

For example, moving money on the Bitcoin Lightning Network costs as little as a fraction of a cent. Other crypto networks cost more than that, but still significantly less than the technologies banks currently use.

Meanwhile, replacing paper-dominated systems with smart contracts that run on blockchains, like Ethereum, would have all kinds of benefits. Banks could offer near-instant verification of bills, letters of credit, and customs documentation, which could significantly reduce administrative costs.

The savings could grow to $100 billion a year if even more processes reach mass adoption... such as tokenized payments and settlements, or shared know-your-customer ("KYC") processes. For example, internal blockchain-based settlement would cut out intermediary fees and delays for institutional clients. And tokenized deposits for banks would allow for instantaneous clearing and compliance-tracked settlements... saving banks money on operational costs and human error.

If banks save $100 billion globally, the U.S. banking system's share would be roughly $33 billion annually. Spread that across the $13 trillion Americans have in outstanding loans, and you get approximately 25 basis points.

I expect banks would pass on these savings to borrowers, largely because of competitive pressure to offer better deals. Meanwhile, regulators like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency consistently pressure banks to pass on efficiency gains to their consumers. (For example, when automated clearing house networks and online lending platforms reduced costs for banks, consumers benefited from lower account fees and cheaper loans.)

These savings would likely result in a permanent quarter-point interest-rate cut for every borrower in America – not from the Federal Reserve, but from structural efficiency gains that can't be reversed when inflation ticks up.

Your $300,000 mortgage? You would save $750 per year for 30 years. Your $50,000 car loan? You would save $125 annually. That small $100,000 business loan? You would save $250 a year.

While Washington fights over 25-basis-point moves that get reversed every economic cycle, blockchain could deliver the same benefit permanently.

The potential savings – and ability to offer lower borrowing costs and higher interest rates for deposits – is why I believe more and more banks will start using crypto tech.

That would mean billions of new dollars in the crypto space... and $330 billion back into consumers' pockets over the next decade.

Good investing,

Eric Wade

Editor's note: A new government mandate has just upended the crypto world – and Eric Wade says it's setting off a rare "hailstorm event." The analyst behind more 10-bagger wins than anyone in Stansberry Research history sees another opportunity for investors to make 50-fold gains. But with crypto nearing its "ChatGPT moment," the window to act is closing fast.