Gemini co-founder Tyler Winklevoss has taken to the X social media platform to accuse banking giant JPMorgan of trying to “kill” cryptocurrency companies.
This comes after Bloomberg reported earlier this week that America’s largest bank would start requiring fintech companies to pay fees in order to be able to gain access to the account information of JPMorgan customers.
With such a move, the banking behemoth is attempting to take away the right to access banking data for free via third-party platforms like Plaid, which act as intermediaries between bank accounts and various financial applications.
Winklevoss is convinced that the latest demand will actually demolish fintech firms that serve as a foundational layer for a plethora of financial firms. Major cryptocurrency exchanges, such as Gemini and Coinbase, also rely on such services for funding user accounts.
The Gemini co-founder further pointed out that the “Open Banking Rule” makes it possible to access their financial data through third-party apps. However, the banking industry has started a legal fight against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), arguing that the rule exceeds the agency’s statutory authority. In May, the CFPB confirmed that it would kill the rule that mandates sharing data with third parties upon request.
The banking industry is concerned about the regulatory burden of extensive data sharing.
However, Winklevoss described the move as “egregious regulatory capture.”
“This is the kind of egregious regulatory capture that kills innovation, hurts the American consumer, and is bad for America,” Winklevoss said.