BitGo’s CEO Says Traditional Banks Can’t Win the Custody War
The post BitGo’s CEO Says Traditional Banks Can’t Win the Custody War appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Fintech Two months after its NYSE debut, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe is making the case that the crypto custody market has a structural problem — and that his company is the only kind of firm built to solve it. Key Takeaways BitGo CEO argues crypto-native firms have a structural advantage over traditional banks in custody Over 80% of revenue comes from custody and staking fees — not volatile trading volume Federal bank charter secured, holding $104B in assets across 4,900+ institutional clients Belshe sees BitGo as the foundational infrastructure layer of the entire crypto ecosystem Appearing on The Crypto Beat on March 6, Belshe was direct: traditional financial institutions are compromised by design. Banks like Morgan Stanley that run trading desks alongside custody operations face inherent conflicts of interest that crypto-native firms simply don’t carry. In his view, that conflict isn’t a minor compliance footnote — it’s a fundamental flaw in how legacy institutions are wired. The Conflict of Interest Argument The logic is straightforward. When a bank profits from trading activity, its incentives around custody — safeguarding client assets without skin in the market game — become muddied. Belshe argues that BitGo, built from the ground up around custody and staking infrastructure, doesn’t face that tension. The business model either works as a neutral, secure custodian or it doesn’t work at all. That focus shows up in the revenue mix. More than 80% of BitGo’s income comes from custody and staking fees — recurring, relatively stable revenue that doesn’t swing with crypto market volatility the way exchange-dependent models do. For institutional clients, that predictability matters. Credentials That Back the Claim The argument carries more weight with a federal banking charter behind it. In late 2025, BitGo received unconditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to…
Filed under: News - @ March 7, 2026 8:05 pm