- JPM -0.12% BTC-USD -0.42% MSTR -3.74%
The crypto industry is once again at war with one of Wall Street’s most influential institutions.
In just 48 hours, JPMorgan Chase, MSCI’s proposed index rule changes, and the abrupt closure of cryptocurrency payment app Strike CEO Jack Mallers’s personal bank accounts have combined into what many inside the Bitcoin community now describe as a new chapter of “Operation Chokepoint 2.0.”
The backlash comes after MSCI’s January 2026 proposal to exclude companies whose balance sheets hold more than 50% crypto assets, a rule that directly targets Bitcoin-treasury companies such as Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy). JP Morgan circulated the analysis in a research note.
Related: JPMorgan warns of MicroStrategy delisting risk from major equity indices
Within hours, prominent Bitcoin supporters, analysts and influencers began calling for a “full boycott” of JPMorgan.
Several others linked the move to historic episodes where U.S. regulators and major banks allegedly cut off crypto firms from banking rails under the now-infamous “Operation Chokepoint.”
A long and troubled history
Since 2017, users, miners and executives have repeatedly reported sudden account closures, compliance flags and what they describe as discriminatory treatment.
Those fears intensified in 2020–2022, when the term “Operation Chokepoint 2.0” emerged, a label the crypto industry used to describe what they believed was a coordinated effort by federal regulators and banks to deny services to crypto businesses.
Related: 'First crypto president' Trump claims credit for ending Operation Choke Point 2.0
The original Operation Chokepoint (1.0) occurred under the Obama administration between 2013–2017 and targeted industries considered “high-risk,” including payday lenders, firearms sellers and gambling platforms. Crypto leaders argue the same playbook was dusted off for their industry a decade later.
Donald Trump appeared to acknowledge the problem himself in June 2025, saying:
“I can tell you, because I’ve been a victim myself because of my politics, that big banks were very nasty to us.”
He later signed an executive order prohibiting debanking of crypto initiatives, but this week’s events have reignited concerns that the practice never truly ended.
More News:
-
House considers insider trading ban as government shutdown comes to an end
-
Billionaire twins–backed stock surges 100% after buying $50M ‘encrypted Bitcoin’
-
MicroStrategy stock drops 60% from peak as mNAV approaches 1
Strike CEO says, ‘thrown out of the bank’
The fuse was relit when Strike CEO Jack Mallers revealed on Nov. 23 that JPMorgan had abruptly terminated his accounts in September:
Story Continues“Last month, J.P. Morgan Chase threw me out of the bank… Every time I asked them why, they said the same thing: ‘We aren’t allowed to tell you.’”
Mallers posted the closure letter citing “concerning activity,” along with a note referencing the Bank Secrecy Act and warning the bank may refuse future account openings.
A framed copy of the account-closure notice sent to Strike CEO Jack Mallers by JPMorgan Chase, dated Sept. 2, 2025. Source: Jack Mallers Bo Hines, former head of Trump’s Council of Advisers on Digital Assets and now a strategic advisor to stablecoin issuer Tether, publicly confronted JPMorgan:
“Hey Chase… you guys know Operation Choke Point is over, right? Just checking.”
A threat to crypto-treasury companies
The bigger explosion, however, came from MSCI’s proposed rule change, first mentioned in a JPMorgan research note circulated this week.
MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International) creates and maintains some of the most important equity benchmarks globally, including the MSCI USA Index, which tracks 85% of the American stock market. Many pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and ETFs must track these indices.
Thus, inclusion equals inflows, and exclusion equals forced selling.
MSCI is now weighing a new rule. Companies holding 50% or more of their total assets in crypto may be ineligible for index inclusion.
Related: MSCI delisting shock erases 45% of crypto-treasury value
The rule is aimed directly at “digital asset treasury companies”, especially Strategy, which holds 649,870 BTC on its balance sheet.
JPMorgan wrote, “MicroStrategy is at risk of exclusion from major equity indices as the January 15th MSCI decision approaches.”
The bank added:
“Outflows could amount to $2.8 billion if MicroStrategy gets excluded from MSCI indices and $8.8 billion from all other equity indices if other providers choose to follow.”
More from TheStreet Roundtable:
-
Florida launches major probe into JPMorgan amid fresh 'debanking' claims
-
Polymarket services restored after brief downtime
-
'Rich Dad Poor Dad' author warns of ‘The Big Print’ as ‘fake money crashes’
Crypto calls for boycott erupt
Bitcoin supporters called for a complete boycott of JPMorgan and its services.
Real estate investor and Bitcoin advocate Grant Cardone wrote, “I just pulled $20 million from Chase and suing them for credit card malfeasance.”
Real estate investor and Bitcoin advocate Grant Cardone calls for a boycott of JPMorgan after the MSCI-crypto controversy, urging followers to “close your account” and “move your money.” (Source: Grant Cardone / X) Several others like long-time Bitcoin maximalist and advisor to El Salvador, Max Keiser also shared 'boycott' screenshots.
Together, the posts fueled a viral online movement calling for a boycott of JPMorgan, with tens of thousands of engagements across X.
Strategy’s Saylor breaks silence: ‘We are not a fund’
On Nov. 21, Strategy founder Michael Saylor issued a sharp response to MSCI’s proposed rules:
“Strategy is not a fund, not a trust, and not a holding company. We’re a publicly traded operating company with a $500 million software business and a unique treasury strategy that uses Bitcoin as productive capital.”
He added:
“Funds and trusts passively hold assets. Holding companies sit on investments. We create, structure, issue, and operate.”
Related: Michael Saylor responds to JPMorgan’s MSCI delisting warning
Saylor highlighted that the company issued five digital credit securities in 2025 totaling over $7.7 billion, including the new Bitcoin-backed credit instrument Stretch ($STRC), which he described as:
“A revolutionary Bitcoin-backed treasury credit instrument.”
According to Saylor, index classifications — including MSCI’s — have “no bearing” on Strategy’s mission to build “the world’s first digital monetary institution.”
A trigger for Operation Chokepoint 3.0?
Some analysts warn that coordinated pressures on exchanges, CEOs, and treasury companies resemble a third-wave chokepoint — though such claims remain unverified.
TheStreet Roundtable could not independently confirm allegations of intentional targeting or coordinated activity between JPMorgan and MSCI.
The MSCI-JPMorgan storm hit at a particularly vulnerable time:
-
Bitcoin is down from $126,000 to the low $85,000s
-
Monthly liquidations exceeded $2 billion
-
Bloomberg’s Mike McGlone warned BTC could fall to $10,000
-
MicroStrategy’s stock is down 40% in a month
Crypto-levered equities — miners, wallets, treasuries — have also suffered deep double-digit declines.
JPMorgan did not immediately respond to TheStreet Roundtable’s request for comment.
This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Nov 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the Policy section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Terms and Privacy Policy Privacy Dashboard More Info
