What just happened may change many people's perception of cryptocurrencies.

The U.S. banking system has taken a crucial step - customers can now hold Bitcoin directly in their bank accounts, eliminating the need to transit through ETFs or other complex financial products. This is not an escrow service or derivatives wrapping, but a real Bitcoin asset.

The impact of this change is far deeper than it seems.

First of all, the reason for "distrusting exchanges" is untenable. The bank's security system, insurance mechanism, and regulatory framework can now all be used to protect Bitcoin assets. For ordinary users who have been worried about exchanges running away and hacking, bank custody offers a more familiar option. No need to study any private keys, mnemonic phrases, hardware wallets - just open the mobile banking app to complete the operation.

Second, the entry threshold has been significantly lowered. In the last bull market, most of the participants were early adopters with some understanding of technology. But when buying Bitcoin becomes as simple as buying a financial product, the potential user base will expand exponentially. The customer base of traditional financial institutions is in the hundreds of millions, and even if only a small number of people start allocating crypto assets, the growth of market capacity is staggering.

What's even more interesting is the change in the attitude of banks. A few years ago, traditional financial institutions were still questioning Bitcoin on the grounds of "money laundering risk", "price fluctuations" and "energy consumption". What now? They personally became custodians and promoters of crypto assets. Behind this 180-degree turn is the face to market demand and the anxiety of the erosion of its own business boundaries. Instead of being robbed of customers by emerging fintechs, it is better to actively embrace change.

Looking back a few steps, the pattern of traditional assets may be reshuffled. Gold's status as a safe-haven asset will be challenged, after all, digital gold is now backed by banks. Although ETFs open a channel for institutional funds to enter, there is still an extra layer in the middle compared to direct custody. As for regulatory restrictions in some regions, unilateral bans will become increasingly difficult to enforce when mainstream global banking systems begin to accept Bitcoin.

This is not a prophecy or speculation, but an ongoing reality. The banking system does not change its position for no reason - they enter because it is more expensive not to enter.