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Is Cryptocurrency Threatening Earnings at Bank of America? (thenextweb.com)

Posted by EditorDavid on from the money-in-the-bank dept.

An anonymous reader quotes The Next Web: One of the world's largest financial institutions admitted in its annual report that cryptocurrency is a looming threat to its business model. According to a report filed with the SEC by Bank of America, "Clients may choose to conduct business with other market participants who engage in business or offer products in areas we deem speculative or risky, such as cryptocurrencies. Increased competition may negatively affect our earnings by creating pressure to lower prices or credit standards on our products and services requiring additional investment to improve the quality and delivery of our technology and/or reducing our market share, or affecting the willingness of clients to do business with us."

2 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. I don't partake in cryptocurrencies but by C18H27NO3+ · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I honestly couldn't care less what Bank of America thinks about anything at all.

    1. Re:I don't partake in cryptocurrencies but by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I honestly couldn't care less what Bank of America thinks about anything at all.

      SEC filings don't indicate what companies think. The rules for SEC filings are simple:

      1. If you leave something out, you may get sued.
      2. If you put something in, it can't hurt you because nobody reads them.

      So companies tend to just toss any possible threat into the document, no matter how implausible. If they later get a shareholder lawsuit, they can point to the SEC filing and say "Hey, we warned you".

      The mention of bitcoin in BOA's SEC filing just means their lawyers are doing their job and nothing else. It certainly does not mean they see it as a plausible threat.