- JPMorgan's research amplified MSCI's proposed rule, sparking fears Strategy could face massive forced sell-offs and billions in outflows.
- Bitcoin community and public figures rallied, closing accounts and calling for boycotts, equating JPMorgan's stance with entrenched anti-crypto bias.
- Potential index exclusion threatens broader market contagion, but crypto supporters vow retaliation and renewed institutional adoption debate.
The Bitcoin world doesn’t back down easily, and right now, it’s turning its laser focus on one of the biggest names in traditional finance: JPMorgan Chase.
What started as a seemingly dry research note from the banking behemoth has snowballed into a full-throated online revolt, with Bitcoin maximalists, real estate moguls, and everyday retail investors banding together to demand a boycott.
At the heart of the storm is Strategy, the pioneering Bitcoin treasury firm that’s become a poster child for corporate adoption of the world’s largest cryptocurrency.
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As whispers of index exclusions threaten to trigger massive sell-offs, the crypto community isn’t just complaining—they’re closing accounts and plotting countermeasures.
So, What’s Going On?
It all kicked off late last week when MSCI, the powerhouse index provider (once known as Morgan Stanley Capital International), floated a policy shift set to hit in January 2026.
Under the proposed rules, any company with more than 50% of its balance sheet tied up in cryptocurrencies—like Bitcoin—would get booted from MSCI’s indexes.
These aren’t niche lists; they’re the benchmarks that guide trillions in passive investment flows from mutual funds, ETFs, and institutional portfolios.
Get excluded, and you’re suddenly facing an avalanche of forced sales from asset managers who have to stick to the script.
JPMorgan didn’t invent the rule, but they were the ones who amplified it.
In a research note shared widely across financial circles, the bank’s analysts laid out the grim math: Strategy, fresh off its December 2024 entry into the Nasdaq 100, could see up to $2.8 billion in outflows if MSCI pulls the trigger.
Some estimates even balloon to $8.8 billion if other index giants follow suit.
That’s not pocket change—it’s a potential gut punch to Strategy’s stock and, by extension, Bitcoin’s price, as forced liquidations ripple through the market.
For Bitcoin holders, this feels like more than bureaucracy gone wild. It’s a deliberate roadblock from the old guard of finance, hell-bent on keeping crypto at arm’s length even as institutions pile in.
“The exclusion of crypto treasury companies from stock indexes could trigger an automatic sell-off of their shares from funds and asset managers that are mandated to buy specific types of financial instruments, and could negatively impact crypto markets,” the JPMorgan note warned, pouring fuel on the fire.
Founder Michael Saylor Weighs In
Strategy’s founder, Michael Saylor—the evangelist-in-chief for corporate Bitcoin strategies—is fighting back.
On Friday, he fired back on X, drawing a sharp line between what his company does and the passive players MSCI seems to favor.
“Strategy is not a fund, not a trust, and not a holding company,” Saylor declared.
“Funds and trusts passively hold assets. Holding companies sit on investments. We create, structure, issue, and operate.”
He capped it off by positioning Strategy as a “Bitcoin-backed structured finance company,” flipping the script from liability to innovation powerhouse.
Saylor’s response landed like a mic drop, but it was just the opening act. By Sunday, the backlash had legs, with high-profile voices turning up the volume.
Public Figures Scrutinize JPMorgan, Demand Boycott
Real estate titan Grant Cardone, no stranger to bold moves or Bitcoin evangelism, announced he’d yanked $20 million from his Chase accounts—the consumer arm of JPMorgan—and was lawyering up over alleged credit card shenanigans.
“I just pulled $20 million from Chase and suing them for credit card malfeasance,” he posted, tagging it as a direct shot in the boycott crosshairs.
Then there’s Max Keiser, the firebrand Bitcoin advocate and advisor to El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, who took it to another level.
“Crash JP Morgan and buy Strategy and BTC,” he urged, channeling the kind of raw energy that’s made him a crypto folk hero.
Keiser’s call wasn’t isolated; it echoed across X, where threads lit up with users sharing screenshots of closed accounts and vows to ditch the bank for good.
Zoom out to X, and you’ll see the retail investor pulse racing. This isn’t some echo chamber of bots—it’s real people, from day traders to long-term HODLers, venting frustration that’s been simmering for years.
JPMorgan’s history with crypto is a rollercoaster of hypocrisy: CEO Jamie Dimon once branded Bitcoin a “fraud” and a “Ponzi scheme,” even threatening to fire employees who dared buy it back in 2017.
Fast-forward, and the same bank is quietly stacking Bitcoin ETFs—$343 million in BlackRock’s IBIT alone as of November, a 64% jump since summer—and offering loans backed by crypto collateral.
“Don’t listen to their words, watch their actions,” one user quipped in a viral post that racked up over 1,800 likes, sharing a clip of JPMorgan’s shifting stances.
Retail Investor Sentiment
The sentiment? JPMorgan’s under a microscope, and retail’s not holding back.
Posts like “JP Morgan’s anti-Bitcoin stance is a sinking ship. Strategy bros say boycott. Time to sink or swim, paper hands?” from DeFi enthusiasts are popping up alongside calls to “DISENGAGE WITH TRADFI WHILE YOU STILL CAN” and self-custody everything.
One thread warned of a GameStop-style squeeze on Strategy stock if shorts from big banks like JPMorgan get exposed, with users plotting to pump shares in defiance.
Even pro-XRP lawyer John Deaton jumped in, blasting the bank for what he sees as a “premeditated attack” on Strategy shareholders.
It’s not all fresh wounds, either. Layer on recent scrutiny from Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, who grilled JPMorgan over its handling of Jeffrey Epstein’s suspicious transactions, and you’ve got a perfect storm.
Unrelated on the surface, but in the crypto crowd’s eyes, it’s all connected—proof that the system’s rigged against outsiders.
“The enemy has a name: it’s the Banking system,” one post lamented, linking JPMorgan’s post-financial-crisis stock surge to a broader “crime syndicate.”
As the boycott gains steam, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
What Happens Now?
Strategy’s Nasdaq 100 inclusion last December was a watershed, unlocking passive inflows that supercharged its Bitcoin war chest.
Losing index status wouldn’t just ding the stock; analysts say it could spark a broader crypto dip if other treasury firms like it follow suit and start dumping BTC to stay compliant.
“A sudden sell-off from crypto treasury companies impacted by the proposed MSCI change could force digital asset prices down,” as one report put it.
Yet amid the outrage, there’s a defiant optimism bubbling up.
Saylor’s already shrugging off Wall Street jabs, and posts like “This is how Bitcoin wins—one reluctant convert at a time” highlight how even skeptics like JPMorgan are inching toward adoption.
Retail traders are buzzing about turning this into their moment, much like the meme stock frenzies of yore.
Will the boycott stick? Or is it just noise in Bitcoin’s endless bull run?
One thing’s clear: the crypto faithful aren’t waiting to find out.
They’re voting with their wallets, one closed account at a time. If history’s any guide, underestimating this crowd is a costly mistake.
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