EY: Wallets are upgrading from crypto tools to financial gateways, replacing bank accounts in managing customer relationships

PANews February 7 News: According to CoinDesk, one of the Big Four accounting firms, Ernst & Young (EY), stated that wallets are evolving from crypto tools to the core gateway of the next-generation financial system and pointed out that “the wallet itself is a strategy; whoever controls the wallet controls the customer relationship.” Analyst Mark Nichols noted that wallets will become a key infrastructure for storing, transferring, and managing tokenized assets. In the future, they will not only be used for crypto assets but will also cover on-chain financial scenarios such as payments, stablecoins, and private credit, serving as a unified entry point connecting all on-chain financial activities like payments, tokenized assets, and stablecoins. However, EY predicts that self-custody wallets are unlikely to become mainstream, and the market will be dominated by trusted wallet service providers such as banks, fintech companies, and professional custody institutions.