JPMorgan to accept BTC and ETH as loan collateral

JPMorgan Chase will let institutional clients pledge bitcoin and ether as collateral for loans by year-end, a notable deepening of Wall Street’s engagement with digital assets. The bank plans to recognize the leading cryptoassets within its collateral management systems, signaling growing comfort with custody, valuation, and risk controls around highly liquid tokens. The move could widen access to credit for institutions that hold crypto on balance sheets or in funds, while keeping exposures within JPMorgan’s existing risk frameworks. It follows rising demand for ways to finance against digital assets without forced sales and comes amid broader institutional steps to integrate crypto into traditional capital markets.

Trump pardons Binance founder Changpeng Zhao

The White House announced a presidential pardon for Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance who pleaded guilty in 2023 to violations related to anti-money-laundering controls and served a four-month sentence. Officials framed the pardon as part of a broader policy shift to support the U.S. crypto industry, though critics raised concerns about signals it sends on enforcement and potential conflicts of interest. Zhao expressed gratitude and said he would support U.S. leadership in digital assets. The pardon adds a new political dimension to a market already reacting to regulatory change and institutional adoption.

Whales shift BTC into spot ETF shares

Some large bitcoin holders are increasingly converting their direct BTC holdings into shares of U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs, according to recent reporting. The swap can allow investors to access securities-market infrastructure, simplify estate and tax planning, and in some cases facilitate borrowing against positions without triggering sales. The trend underscores the growing role of spot ETFs as institutional rails for bitcoin exposure and as venues that can integrate with traditional prime brokerage and collateral systems. It also reflects portfolio engineering choices as liquidity migrates between on-chain wallets and regulated fund structures.

How Banks are finding business use cases for Stablecoins

Metallicus CFO Irina Berkon spoke on Tuesday, October 21st, at the American Banker Most Powerful Women in Banking Conference in New York City. She joined Debopama Sen (Citi), Rachel Anderika (Anchorage Digital), and Ro Spaziani (Gibson Dunn) for a panel titled “Payments, Stablecoins, and the Radical Remaking of the Financial Industry,” exploring how stablecoins are reshaping financial infrastructure. Read more →

Bitcoin ETF Flows

Monday saw net outflows of about $40.4m, driven by IBIT (−$100.7m) while gains at Fidelity FBTC (+$9.7m), Bitwise BITB (+$12.1m) and VanEck HODL (+$21.2m) partially offset the move. On Tuesday the tape flipped hard to inflows, with a net +$477.2m led by IBIT (+$210.9m), ARKB (+$162.9m), FBTC (+$34.1m) and BITB (+$20.1m). Midweek weakness followed on Wednesday with a −$101.4m net outflow, as ARKB (−$53.9m), FBTC (−$56.6m), BITB (−$10.0m) and GBTC (−$56.6m) weighed. Thursday stabilized to a modest +$20.3m net inflow, helped by IBIT (+$107.8m) and BITB (+$17.4m) against ongoing redemptions at ARKB (−$55.0m) and GBTC (−$60.5m). Overall, the week balanced a sharp Tuesday surge against midweek selling to finish mixed into Friday’s print.

Ethereum ETF Flows

Monday opened with a −$145.7m net outflow, led by BlackRock ETHA (−$117.9m) and Fidelity FETH (−$27.8m). Tuesday reversed to a net +$141.7m, with the strongest contributions from FETH (+$59.1m), ETHA (+$42.5m), ETHE (+$13.1m), ETH (+$22.6m) and ETHV (+$4.4m). Wednesday was relatively soft at −$18.9m, reflecting continued churn across issuers. Thursday marked the weakest day of the week at −$127.4m as FETH (−$77.0m), ETHA (−$23.4m), ETHW (−$8.8m), VanEck ETHV (−$5.6m), ETHE (−$5.7m) and ETH (−$6.9m) all saw redemptions. Netting the swings, ETH products ended the week skewed to outflows despite Tuesday’s brief strength.

Top Gainers (Coins Available on Metal Pay)

LOAN Protocol led the board at +15.9% on the week, followed by XPR Network (+11.0%), XRP (+9.2%), Litecoin (+7.5%) and Dogecoin (+6.2%). The basket showed resilient bid versus broader chop, with rotation into mid-caps and payments names while sentiment, per the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, hovered around neutral levels during the week.