By the time you're reading this, you are likely already aware of BlackRock (along with other major investment firms like Fidelity) making a play for crypto. Recently, the firm filed an application for a Bitcoin spot ETF license. The timing is rather curious when the SEC is aggressively going after major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase.
In a February post I made on Publish0x and Read.cash, I hypothesized that the reason the SEC was going after the exchanges and staking in order to give the USD-based CBDC a monopoly. This may still turn out to be true, but the recent BlackRock news made me realize that there's something else at play: there is a concerted effort to centralize crypto.
Unlike the US dollar, you cannot print more Bitcoin. There are 21 Bitcoin in total, no more no less. My hunch is BlackRock and the other investment firms are trying to exploit that. The SEC has gone after the exchanges and by extension, the ramps so that regular people like you and me cannot use our bank or credit cards to buy some BTC.
Well, don't worry, BlackRock is here to save the day with its Bitcoin ETF! Now, you can buy and sell Bitcoin without actually buying and selling it, and BlackRock will handle that stuff for you. Transferring your BTC to a cold wallet? Well, we can't have that sort of terrorist activity! /s
But what's even more insidious is what BlackRock may intend to with its de facto Bitcoin one-stop-shop status:
On June 20, 2023, James O'Keefe and the O'Keefe Media Group published a 10+ minute long exposé on BlackRock recruiter Serge Varlay. As of me writing about this video, it has garnered over 11 million views. While Varlay is technically at the bottom rungs of the corporate ladder, the video still gives us some insight behind BlackRock's modus operandi and its rather sickening.
Varlay would pontificate his god complex to the undercover reporter, boasting how "every fucking day, [he] literally decide[s] how somebody's life is going to be shaped". How does he and BlackRock do that exactly? By buying politicians, perpetuating forever wars, and pump-and-dump schemes.
In the video, Varlay explained how BlackRock and other firms manipulate politicians. They first invest in a wide variety of industries, grow the portfolio, and use that money to buy out politicians. If one industry doesn't work out, then the firms have several others to fall back on. Varlay emphasized how "it's not through who the president is. It's who's controlling the wallet of the president", i.e. 10% to the Big Guy. Senators, in particular, are very cheap to bribe with just $10K. That's not the only way BlackRock is in bed with the government. The US government is also reliant on BlackRock for its economic simulation.
In the second half of the video, Varlay mentioned how BlackRock does not want the Ukraine-Russia conflict to end because it would provide major investment opportunity. He gave an example of Russia blowing up Ukrainian grain silos. BlackRock would pump in trades for wheat supplier stocks, watch the prices go way up, and then, sell those stocks for millions in profit.
The undercover reporter asked him why (mainstream) news organizations promote these military conflicts. Varlay replied that news feeds on tragedy and "fucked up events", and it drives in viewers. If there's no tragedy, then viewership drops. When the reporter points out that the news organizations trot out the same talking points, Varlay explicitly confirms that it's propaganda.
In the closing minutes of the video, Varlay talked about how BlackRock would try to not be on the news and be under the radar as much as possible. That way, at least according to his hypothesis, it's easier for the organization to do things without people noticing. When the reporter asked him whether normal people should be concerned about BlackRock's operations, Varlay brushed the question off, claiming that normal people don't care about it.
Putting all of this together, here is what I think why BlackRock applied for the Bitcoin ETF license.
(1) With the SEC cracking down on exchanges, this is great opportunity for BlackRock to become the de facto one-stop-shop for "buying" Bitcoin (and possibly other coins like ETH & LTC).(2) Because all of that money is going towards BlackRock instead of Coinbase, Kraken, and Binance, BlackRock has custody and control over a lot of Bitcoin.(3) BlackRock can ride the bull market wave to gain major profits of which it will use them to buy off politicians.(4) Those same politicians will continue to perpetuate forever wars like the Ukraine-Russia conflict so firms like BlackRock can continue their pump-and-dump schemes at the expense of innocent lives.
Sure, the recent news about the Bitcoin ETF led to a spike in BTC price, but there will be more cons than pros at the end of the day. Centralization of power is dangerous and BlackRock wants control.
This is not financial advice, but just mere suggestions from a stranger. If you hold BTC or any other cryptocurrency, make sure you have it in a cold wallet. If it's on an exchange, I suggest moving it off as soon as possible. Remember, not your keys not your crypto.
This article is also co-published on Odysee
, Publish0x, and Read.cash.