Wall Street v. Crypto: Winklevoss Blasts Banks for ‘Sabotaging’ Trump’s Fintech Future

Gemini co-founder says JPMorgan and peers are gutting consumer rights in a bid to kill open banking—and crypto innovation with it

Tyler Winklevoss has never been one to mince words, but his latest broadside against Wall Street banks has lit a fresh fire under the crypto policy debate.

In a blistering post on X, the Gemini co-founder accused America’s largest financial institutions—including JPMorgan Chase—of trying to “kill consumer choice and kneecap innovation” by challenging the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) new Open Banking Rule. His message? Banks aren’t just fighting fintech—they’re actively undermining what Winklevoss described as Donald Trump’s pro-crypto vision for America.

“Make no mistake,” he wrote. “This is about control. This is about Big Banking clinging to its data monopoly and strangling competition in the crib.”

And in a year when crypto has become an election issue, Winklevoss’s words carry extra weight.

A Flashpoint Called ‘Section 1033’

At the heart of this showdown is a deceptively wonky piece of legislation: Section 1033 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act. It empowers consumers to access their financial data and share it with third-party services like Plaid or Yodlee—companies that underpin most modern fintech apps.

Think Venmo, Robinhood, Coinbase. Think neobanks. Think open, interoperable finance.

The CFPB’s Open Banking Rule, finalized earlier this year, puts teeth behind that idea. It forces banks to make customer data portable. That terrifies traditional lenders, who’ve historically kept customer data behind high—and highly profitable—walls.

According to Winklevoss, JPMorgan and other “too-big-to-fail” institutions are now mounting legal challenges against the rule, essentially arguing it infringes on their ability to manage customer risk and security.

But critics, like Winklevoss and Kraken co-founder Arjun Sethi, say the legal push is really about stifling competition, especially from crypto startups.

“Wall Street is terrified,” Sethi posted. “Terrified of a future where consumers control their data, where fintech thrives, and where banks no longer call the shots.”

What the Banks Say (And What They Don’t)

The major U.S. banks have stayed relatively tight-lipped on the latest accusations, but their trade groups have been active.

In a joint amicus brief filed last month, the American Bankers Association (ABA) and the Consumer Bankers Association warned that the Open Banking Rule could “expose consumers to cybersecurity risks, fraud, and data exploitation.”

But that language hasn’t reassured everyone.

“The irony is thick,” said Kristin Smith, CEO of the Blockchain Association. “Banks are suddenly worried about data security? After years of breaches, hacks, and opaque practices?”

A Collision of Timelines

Winklevoss’s latest attack is also political. He invoked Donald Trump’s name repeatedly, framing the legal resistance to open banking as part of a broader backlash against what he called a “pro-innovation agenda.”

The context? Trump’s reelection campaign has leaned into crypto-friendly messaging in recent months—a sharp contrast to the Biden administration’s more hawkish approach. Trump has hinted at supporting a crypto bill, backed endorsements from industry figures, and even entertained the idea of letting Americans hold Bitcoin in retirement accounts.

Winklevoss, who has donated to GOP-linked PACs in the past, is positioning himself as a crypto torchbearer in that emerging Republican policy space.

And if Winklevoss’s instincts are right, this fight could become one of the most consequential regulatory battlegrounds in a year already flooded with fintech lobbying and campaign money.

Why It Matters: Follow the Money

The stakes are huge—not just for banks or crypto companies, but for consumers and the very architecture of American finance.

Here’s a snapshot of how centralized the system is today:

Institution	Share of U.S. Consumer Deposits	Role in CFPB Rule Opposition
JPMorgan Chase	14.5%	Lead plaintiff
Bank of America	10.3%	Silent supporter
Wells Fargo	9.1%	Opposes implementation pace
Citi	8.2%	Neutral publicly
Regional Banks	18.7%	Mixed views

If the CFPB’s rule survives the legal onslaught, third-party apps and crypto wallets could offer seamless cross-platform experiences—lowering fees, increasing transparency, and weakening banks’ historical hold on user data.

If it fails, Winklevoss warns, it could be “the end of the fintech renaissance.”

The Fintech Industry Rallies

A rare coalition of fintech leaders, open finance advocates, and even a few venture capitalists has formed in response.

Their concerns echo Winklevoss’s:

The lawsuits risk bankrupting smaller API-driven fintechs like Atomic, Moov, and AptPay.
It could slow down DeFi onboarding and delay digital wallet adoption.
And most alarmingly, it would cement the incumbents’ power in the post-COVID financial ecosystem.

Even Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, who hasn’t always aligned with the crypto maximalists, threw his hat in the ring. “Open access to financial data isn’t radical,” he said. “It’s the future. Fighting that is like fighting smartphones in 2007.”