MicroStrategy CEO: Wall Street’s Biggest Banks are Locked in a Tight Bitcoin Race
MicroStrategy CEO Phong Le says Wall Street’s largest banks are locked in a tight race for second place on the company’s Bitcoin Banking Adoption Index.
Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, and Citi each score within three points of one another. Fidelity, however, still holds a commanding lead.
Fidelity’s Lead Sets the Bitcoin Banking Adoption Index Bar
The Bitcoin Banking Adoption Index grades 25 major banks on Bitcoin (BTC) trading, custody, and product depth.
Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, published the initial 32% score, drawing on public data through July 10.
Fidelity topped the list at 71%, built on Fidelity Digital Assets, the custody arm it launched back in 2018.
BNY follows at 46%, while Goldman Sachs Group Inc. trails narrowly at 45%. Historically, few banks matched Fidelity’s early crypto custody bet.
Bitcoin traded near $64,539 on Sunday, up about 1% over 24 hours. The index, therefore, measures structural adoption rather than short-term price swings.
One of the more interesting dynamics is the race for second on the Bitcoin Banking Adoption Index. Goldman, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, and Citi are all working on multiple Bitcoin and crypto projects launching this year, with more Clarity by year end. https://t.co/PEaJ6zkevY
— Phong Le (@phongle) July 17, 2026
Goldman, JPMorgan, and Citi Battle for Second
JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup each land at 43%, separated from Goldman by just two points. Record bank earnings this quarter show JPMorgan and Goldman trading desks already profiting from crypto-adjacent activity.
Several rivals are also chasing tokenization efforts underway across the sector, where more than 15 banks now compete to move assets on-chain.
That shift, in contrast, sidesteps Bitcoin entirely and could reshape future index gains.
Vanguard illustrates the gap further. The asset manager only recently began planning its own crypto strategy, years after Fidelity built out its custody business. Meanwhile, smaller regional lenders have barely started.
Major-bank Bitcoin adoption is accelerating, but still early: 32% overall as measured by the index.
Michael Saylor, MircroStrategy’s executive chairman, posted that assessment on X alongside the index’s July 13 debut.
New Launches Could Reshuffle the Bitcoin Banking Adoption Index
Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, and Citi are each developing several crypto initiatives slated for release within the current year. That could include new exchange-traded products, custody expansions, or tokenization tools already in development.
Le expects these launches to bring significantly more clarity to the sector by year-end.
MicroStrategy, holder of the largest corporate Bitcoin treasury, has a stake in that outcome. Saylor’s own case for corporate Bitcoin adoption echoes the same expectation of accelerating bank participation.
Whether Goldman or JPMorgan ultimately claims outright second place may depend on which products actually ship before December arrives.
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