JPMorgan Implementing ‘Operation Chokepoint 3.0,’ Andreessen Horowitz Says
JPMorgan Implementing ‘Operation Chokepoint 3.0,’ Andreessen Horowitz Says
A general partner at the prominent venture capital firm is shedding light on a new shady banking practice designed to undercut the crypto industry.
WRITTEN BY
Frederick Munawa
JPMorgan Implementing ‘Operation Chokepoint 3.0,’ Andreessen Horowitz Says
A16z Warns of JPMorgan’s ‘Operation Chokepoint 3.0’ Tactics
Despite JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon publicly confessing that he is now “a believer in stablecoins,” one general partner at Silicon Valley venture firm Andreessen Horowitz says the bank is quietly sticking it to crypto and fintech firms by overcharging them for access to traditional banking infrastructure.
“The banks are aiming to implement their own Chokepoint 3.0, charging insanely high fees to access data or move money to crypto and fintech apps,” Andreessen Horowitz’s Alex Rampell says in a Thursday newsletter article. “And more concerningly, blocking crypto and fintech apps they don’t like,” he adds.
Operation Choke Point 2.0 was an alleged covert effort by the Biden administration to undermine crypto via debanking and other means. U.S. President Donald Trump has since dismantled most of the underhanded policies created to stifle the industry. This new phenomenon at JPMorgan is not a government activity, but rather, an operation executed directly by the bank itself, and Rampell says the Trump administration should step in to stop JPMorgan’s shenanigans.
“We don’t need a new law,” Rampell explains. “We just need the administration to prevent this callous and manipulative attempt to kill competition and consumer choice.”
JPMorgan Implementing ‘Operation Chokepoint 3.0,’ Andreessen Horowitz Says
(Alex Rampell is a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz and leads the firm’s $1 billion Apps practice / Andreessen Horowitz)
Rampell, a serial entrepreneur who started coding at 10 and graduated from Harvard with a degree in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, references an article published earlier in the month as proof of JPMorgan’s bad intentions. The article says the bank announced a drastic change to how it handles data requests from tech companies seeking access to customers’ banking details. Many payment and crypto apps, such as Venmo, Robinhood, and Coinbase, necessarily transfer data to and from user bank accounts, a process that has been largely free, until now.
“If it suddenly costs $10 to move $100 into a Coinbase or Robinhood account, maybe fewer people will do it,” Rampell explains. “And if JPM and others can block consumers from connecting their own freely chosen crypto and fintech apps to their bank accounts, they effectively eliminate competition.”
JPMorgan has already distributed new fee schedules to data aggregators, firms that act as middlemen between fintech apps and banks. The article referenced by Rampell reports that fees will go into effect “later this year.” JPMorgan’s Dimon says “third parties should compensate banks for access to their systems,” but Rampell thinks the bank’s true motive is much more sinister.
“Make no mistake: this isn’t about a new revenue stream,” says Rampell. “It’s about strangling competition. And if they get away with this, every bank will follow.”
Welcome to Billionaire Club Co LLC, your gateway to a brand-new social media experience! Sign up today and dive into over 10,000 fresh daily articles and videos curated just for your enjoyment. Enjoy the ad free experience, unlimited content interactions, and get that coveted blue check verification—all for just $1 a month!
Account Frozen
Your account is frozen. You can still view content but cannot interact with it.
Please go to your settings to update your account status.
Open Profile Settings