Crypto’s long-standing attempt to break into traditional finance is no longer a speculative ambition — it’s now a calculated push. Over 15 major digital asset firms, including Circle, Paxos, BitGo, and Coinbase, are actively pursuing U.S. banking licenses. Their ultimate goal is to obtain direct access to the Federal Reserve’s Master Account system — an infrastructure reserved for the elite of the financial world. This is not a matter of mere convenience. It’s about fundamentally shifting the role of crypto from disruptor to architect within the existing system.
A Fed Master Account offers more than just faster and cheaper settlement. It’s the entry point into the very core of the U.S. financial infrastructure, eliminating intermediaries and granting institutions access to the central bank’s payment rails. But beyond the technical advantages lies a deeper layer of power — the ability to operate under a fractional reserve framework. Traditionally, only a handful of privileged institutions like JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and BNY Mellon have had this access. These are not just banks; they are stakeholders in the Federal Reserve itself. With a Master Account, they are not merely settling payments — they are creating synthetic liquidity, issuing loans, and multiplying reserves in ways that shape the flow of capital across the economy.
Crypto firms want this seat at the table not just to improve efficiency, but to evolve. The collapse of crypto-friendly banks such as Silvergate and Signature revealed how fragile reliance on third-party banking infrastructure can be. Gaining independence from these legacy rails is now seen as a necessity, not a luxury. A federal or state banking license also boosts credibility — both with customers and regulators — and allows these companies to broaden their services: lending, deposits, stablecoin issuance, and fiat-crypto integration, all under one regulated roof. This move toward licensing is not just about following rules; it’s about gaining access to the tools that traditional finance has used for decades to exert control over markets and liquidity.
What most headlines fail to highlight is that a Fed Master Account allows a company to participate in the money creation process itself. If Circle wanted to mint $10 billion in USDC tomorrow, it might only need to hold $1 billion in Treasuries. The other $9 billion could be backed by tokenized debt instruments or crypto-collateralized assets. That’s the essence of fractional reserve banking — and it’s coming to stablecoins. Coinbase, Paxos, and other crypto-native firms could replicate this model, introducing a new wave of synthetic liquidity into the crypto market. With that liquidity comes price momentum, and with momentum comes collateral value — which in turn allows for more issuance. This recursive loop could inflate markets rapidly, but it also offers a powerful tool for scaling capital in a digital-first economy.
Interestingly, the U.S. government itself is not blind to crypto’s potential role in its financial playbook. The Bitcoin Policy Institute recently proposed a plan that would allow the United States to acquire up to $200 billion in Bitcoin via a new class of sovereign instruments known as BitBonds. These bonds are designed to achieve four objectives: reduce interest costs on traditional Treasury debt, build strategic Bitcoin reserves without taxing citizens, offer a secure and growth-oriented savings product to American families, and chart a gradual path toward national debt reduction by leveraging asset appreciation rather than relying solely on tax increases or spending cuts. Under this plan, 90% of bond revenue would go toward conventional government operations, while the remaining 10% would be used to purchase Bitcoin. There would be no direct taxpayer expense — only a redirection of proceeds toward strategic crypto acquisition.
What we’re witnessing now is not a hostile takeover of banking by crypto, nor the obsolescence of traditional finance. It’s a fusion. If these banking licenses are granted and Master Accounts approved, crypto companies won’t just be financial service providers. They’ll become systemic participants. They’ll issue credit, influence capital flows, mint digital dollars, and perhaps even participate in national debt strategy. That’s not DeFi versus TradFi. That’s the birth of something new: crypto-powered central banking infrastructure.
The timeline is shortening. The regulators are listening. The applications are in. And the infrastructure is being built. The financial system is being redefined — not in a chaotic overthrow, but in a methodical absorption. Crypto is no longer knocking on the door. It’s already inside the building, blueprint in hand.
The only remaining question is: who will hold the keys — and who will be locked out?
This article was originally published by Vladimir Gorbunov on HackerNoon.
