Wall Street is making it easier for bitcoin whales to ditch self-custody: report

Coindesk reports Wall Street firms are expanding institutional custody, trading and financing services that make it easier for large bitcoin holders to hand over private keys to banks and brokers. By bundling custody with liquidity, lending and compliance features, these offerings lower the frictions for whales to abandon self-custody in favor of regulated providers. The key implication is greater concentration of bitcoin supply and counterparty risk in custodians—potentially increasing institutional liquidity and price support while heightening systemic and regulatory centralization risks.