Regional banks in the United States are again under pressure despite measures taken after the 2023 banking crisis.
Stocks of Zions Bank and Western Alliance plunged this week, reigniting concerns about the stability of the sector and the risk of a broader liquidity crisis.
Strike CEO sees warning signs
Jack Mallers, CEO of Strike, emphasized that Bitcoin is signaling trouble in the financial system.
He commented on Primal:
“Bitcoin is accurately smelling trouble right now. The US is going to have to inject some of that sweet, sweet liquidity soon and print a ton of money or else their fiat empire goes kaboom.”
Mallers also took to X to assert:
“Bitcoin is the most sensitive to liquidity. It moves first. It’s a truth machine. Yields are puking, spreads blowing out, and banks are stressed. Bitcoin is working. It smells trouble. When they’re forced to print, it’ll move first again, and outperform everything.”
U.S. banking crisis redux
The vulnerabilities exposed during the March 2023 regional bank crisis persist, with Wall Street worried about bad loans and a lack of confidence in regional banks.
The Kobeissi Letter explained that the system is still “propped up by implicit government guarantees rather than sound financial practices.”
Bitcoin price drops to 4 month low
Despite the stress in banking, Bitcoin fell to a four-month low of $103,850 on Friday before recovering to around $107,000.
The price remains down more than 15% from its all-time high.
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes suggested on X that a worsening crisis could lead to bailouts similar to 2023, offering a potential buying opportunity for those with spare capital.
