Regulation 'overshadows blockchain development'

Despite tighter regulations, blockchain has positive prospects, Bank of America says. But whether it will remain decentralized is another question.

Current sentiment about digital assets is thin, Bank of America (BoA) reportedly says in a recent message. This is mainly due to the SEC's current actions against trading platforms such as Coinbase or Binance.

But crypto trading platforms are only one part of a "larger ecosystem," the BoA said. The strong focus on the latest regulatory measures would overshadow the "integration and development of blockchain technology."

The bank expects the tokenization of traditional assets on corporate private blockchains to transform the financial sector over the next decade. This especially strengthens the argument for centralized adoption of the technology, the bank said.

Competitor JPMorgan Chase takes Thursday in a report takes a slightly different position. In it, the major U.S. bank addresses the recent publication of the Hinman documents.

The SEC staff's statements and comments contained therein had shown that a new categorization is necessary for certain cryptocurrencies, including Ether in particular.

Accordingly, the U.S. Congress could initiate a regulation that would strip cryptocurrencies of the label of securities. This in turn would reignite the efforts of many crypto projects to further decentralize, the report said.

Thus, an application of blockchain technology beyond closed use by private companies is also conceivable.