Goldman Sachs Eyes Crypto, Wall Street Banks Running Solana Validators & More

Welcome back!

This is J264G and this week I’ve got these titbits for you:

• Governmental Bitcoin: President Trump establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.

• Big Bank: Goldman Sachs plans to tokenize one of its money market funds.

• Interpretive Letter: U.S. banks officially cleared to run Solana validators.

Speaking of banks, Deutsche Bank has weighed in on the proposed U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, highlighting its positive aspects—further proof that Wall Street banks are increasingly turning their attention to crypto.

Now, let’s jump right into this week’s newsletter!

Click on any underlined heading/hyperlink to learn more.

Spotlight

Blurred Lines

Chances are you may have overlooked one of last week's biggest stories: Interpretive Letter 1183. 

Interpretive Letter 1183 was issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), an independent bureau within the U.S. Department of the Treasury responsible for chartering, regulating, and supervising all national banks. 

At its core, the letter clarifies that national banks are now permitted to engage in four key crypto activities—without needing case-by-case approval:

• Providing crypto-asset custody services​

• Custodying dollar deposits for stablecoin issuers​ 

• Facilitating stablecoin transactions​ for payments 

• Operating nodes on distributed ledgers i.e. blockchains

Basically, Interpretive Letter 1183 enhances transparency, reduces burdens, and encourages responsible crypto innovation within the U.S. banking sector.​

Exciting times are ahead: Institutional and retail clients will soon have more flexibility than ever in storing their crypto assets—whether in banks, brokers, centralised exchanges, or in self custody solutions such as Phantom, Squads, or Ledger. Stablecoin issuers will operate in a more stable and secure environment, benefiting from increased trust and regulatory backing, as federally regulated banks hold their reserves. More and more stablecoins will integrate into the global payments ecosystem, driving down costs and accelerating transaction speeds. At the same time, banks operating validators will create stronger, more scalable blockchain ecosystems.

Solana, in particular, stands to gain significantly from this regulatory shift as banks will inevitably look to leverage its high throughput and low-cost transactions, making it a prime network for financial innovation. On that note, just imagine JPMorgan Chase running a Firedancer validator on Solana—I honestly couldn’t be more bullish if I tried.

The lines between centralised and decentralised finance are blurring, and the opportunity for collaboration is now—we've got no time to waste, this is the moment to start onboarding Wall Street banks to Solana.

Chart Of The Week

News Bites

Governmental Bitcoin: President Trump has signed an executive order to establish both a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a Digital Asset Stockpile. These reserves will be backed by cryptocurrencies already owned by the government, marking a significant shift in U.S. digital asset policy.

Solana DeFi: Franklin Templeton has released a new research report comparing DeFi on Solana and Ethereum. The study finds that despite strong growth and solid fundamentals, the valuation multiples of DeFi protocols on Solana remain notably low compared to their Ethereum counterparts.

Big Bank: Goldman Sachs plans to tokenize one of its money market funds. While the fund does not currently leverage blockchain technology, tokenized shares will primarily be held through intermediaries using blockchain networks. 

Decentralised Science: Curetopia, Solana’s first BioDAO, may have uncovered a treatment for AARS2 deficiency—a fatal rare disease—by leveraging AI-driven yeast-based drug screening.

Crypto Regulation: The SEC's Crypto Task Force will host a series of roundtables to explore key regulation issues, with the first one kicking off on March 21. It is open to the public, will be streamed live on the SEC website, and a recording will be available afterwards.

Caught In 4K

Weekly Take

Keks & Giggles

And that's a wrap!

If you'd like to reach me, respond to this newsletter or ping me on 𝕏.

Talk soon!

J264G

_{DISCLAIMER
None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research. Lastly, please be advised that we discuss products and services from our partners from which our team members may hold tokens/equity.}