Custodia Bank CEO Criticizes Fed Over FedNow Exclusion

• Long noticed Amsterdam-based Adyen being granted access to the FedNow system.
• The CEO is presently in the middle of a lawsuit against the Fed over the master account.

Caitlin Long, CEO of Custodia Bank, asserts, “The law is very clear,” with the exception of the Fed’s involvement. She noticed Amsterdam-based Adyen among the first group of 35 financial institutions that were granted access to the new 24-hour payment system FedNow on Thursday.

The financial technology business got a bank license in Europe, “backdoored itself into the system,” according to comments made by the CEO. Long called it “very un-American” for a European firm to secure a position while U.S. companies cannot. As a result, she has made the claim that the Federal Reserve is “not applying the law.”

Lawsuit Over Master Account

A U.S. government payments charter would provide Long’s Custodia Bank access to the FedWire network, which processed over $1 quadrillion in 2022. She is presently in the middle of a lawsuit against the Fed, which, according to Long, is attempting to “turn tail and run” and “make an example” of Custodia.

In addition to Custodia, the Federal Reserve is blocking the acquisition of a master account by eight additional fintech companies, four of which are in the crypto market.

Furthermore, Long, a seasoned lawyer, said that “this is all bigger than crypto.” But, she pointed out, the crypto sector may be the one to put a stop to the government’s intrusiveness. She refers to the lawsuits that crypto firms like Ripple are filing as “bet-the-farm” cases, and she claims that the courts are increasingly on the side of the industry. Moreover, the CEO feels that the new FedNow service is inadequate.

Highlighted Crypto News Today:

Shibarium Testnet Hits 31M Transactions Ahead of Mainnet Launch