Strategy’s Michael Saylor expects regulatory progress for Bitcoin custody without new legislation

Michael Saylor isn’t waiting for Congress to get its act together. The executive chairman of Strategy, the company formerly known as MicroStrategy, said on September 16 that US regulators are prepared to advance digital asset rules under existing statutes, bypassing the stalled CLARITY Act entirely.

His thesis: the SEC, CFTC, and Treasury Department will create workable frameworks using the legal tools they already have. The result, Saylor argues, will be traditional banks expanding into Bitcoin custody and collateralized lending in a meaningful way.

Regulators moving without Congress

The CLARITY Act, which was supposed to provide comprehensive digital asset legislation, has been stuck in congressional limbo. Federal agencies, he contends, have sufficient authority under current law to establish the guardrails the industry needs.

The SEC issued guidance on December 17, 2025, clarifying how broker-dealers should handle custody obligations for crypto asset securities. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has also endorsed the ability of nationally chartered banks to custody digital assets.

Saylor also pointed to the GENIUS Act as a potential catalyst, specifically for stablecoin adoption. A clearer stablecoin framework would expand the on-ramps between traditional finance and digital assets, creating more reasons for banks to build out their crypto infrastructure.

Strategy puts its Bitcoin where its mouth is

Strategy holds hundreds of thousands of BTC, with roughly 40% custodied through Coinbase Custody and additional holdings managed by Anchorage Digital Bank, both US-regulated entities.

What bank-led Bitcoin custody actually changes

Pension funds, endowments, and insurance companies typically have mandates that require them to use regulated banking institutions for asset custody. The moment major banks offer Bitcoin custody at scale, a dam breaks.

Bitcoin-collateralized loans allow holders to access liquidity without selling their positions, a tax-efficient strategy that also avoids triggering capital gains. For a company like Strategy, which has built its entire corporate identity around accumulating Bitcoin, the ability to borrow against those holdings at competitive bank rates would be transformative.

Multiple banks have announced or expanded digital asset custody and lending services over the course of 2026, coinciding with the regulatory shifts Saylor described.