The recent crash of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX may just be the latest in a growing litany of woes for the cryptocurrency sector, but it can no longer be denied that the industry is in the middle of a serious crisis. Those who were previously all-in when it came to investing in crypto are now holding on to their money and even hard-core crypto supporters have lost their faith in many major players due to an erosion in trust.

That said, succor for the crypto sector may come from a surprising source: traditional financial institutions, specifically some of Wall Street’s biggest players.

How Could This Play Out?

Back in May, banking titan JPMorgan Chase signed on crypto exchanges Coinbase and Gemini – a move that was taken as a sign that Wall Street’s frosty reception of the crypto scene was beginning to thaw. However, experts feel that this isn’t proof of support from the traditional banking sector.

According to Dick Bove, chief financial strategist for the Odeon Capital Group, banks are considered a rival of the cryptocurrency sector as they both delve into the business of offering financial products to customers. That said, it is unlikely that traditional banks could look kindly upon cryptos in trouble.

Likewise, the US Bank Policy Institute recently made a statement after the fall of FTX. The Institute represents traditional banking firms and, in light of FTX’s fall into bankruptcy following its failure to secure funding, has advised financial policymakers not to draw crypto companies into the midst of the US financial scene by giving them Fed accounts. If they do, it is likely that the next crypto crisis would lead to the undermining of the country’s financial stability.

Not Willing to Pay the Price

This does not mean that traditional banks have not sought a piece of the cryptocurrency action.

JP Morgan subsidiary Silvergate, for example, signed over 850 digital currency customers, a number that includes an extensive array of exchanges as well as institutional investors. However, this has not worked in the bank’s favor: following reports that Silvergate had some exposure to FTX, its stock value dropped by 10% this month – and this is despite the fact that FTX only accounted for 10% of its nearly $11.9 billion in deposits from digital asset customers.

It should be noted that this point that experts believe that traditional banks have so little working knowledge of cryptocurrencies that most are unlikely to jump into the scene. Indeed, it is possible that banks won’t mind seeing cryptos sink deeper as this would, again, level out the playing field.