After receiving criticism for his previous comments supporting regulated Bitcoin custody, MicroStrategy founder and prominent Bitcoin advocate Michael Saylor has clarified his stance, reiterating his support for personal crypto custody.
“I support self-custody for those willing and able, the right to self-custody for all, and the freedom to choose the form of custody and custodian for individuals and institutions globally,” Saylor wrote in a post on X on Wednesday.
Saylor’s statement comes after a wave of backlash sparked by an interview with the NZ Herald in which he suggested that holding Bitcoin through regulated finance giants such as BlackRock and Fidelity was a safer and more stable option. He argued that regulated oversight could reduce the risks of loss and volatility.
When asked about concerns about centralization and government control, Saylor called those fears exaggerated, attributing them to “paranoid crypto-anarchists.”
Saylor’s comments have drawn harsh criticism from many influential figures in the crypto world, with Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin not backing down, calling Saylor’s position “crazy.”
“He seems to be openly advocating a regulatory catch-up approach to protecting crypto,” Buterin wrote in a post on X. “There’s plenty of precedent for how this strategy can fail, and that’s not what crypto is about for me.”
Buterin’s remarks were in response to Casa co-founder and CTO Jameson Lopp, who emphasized the importance of self-custody. Lopp argued that self-custody is necessary to maintain decentralization, increase network security, and encourage continuous innovation without relying on third parties.
*This is not investment advice.